Posts by Robert Howard73

Alright, I get it. But I have another question that’s making me second-guess everything.

If I renounce my share of the estate during probate—even though there isn't actually any property to claim here—does that mean I lose my right to inherit from my grandmother when she passes away later?
Let me clarify: when my grandmother dies, her children inherit her estate, and since my father is deceased, I would inherit his portion. Does participating in this current probate matter for my future rights to that inheritance?

I didn't! So, what's the move here? Do we file for probate or not? Is this going to be handled officially, or what? Should I actually head down to Chase, or just let them keep sending those collection notices to my grandmother's place where my father used to live?

Where do I even begin?

Hello.
Can someone tell me if I’m actually liable for the bank loans my late father took out?

I'm in my 30s with my own family to support. My father passed away five months ago, and he left absolutely nothing behind—no assets, no property, nothing.

He and my mother divorced about 20 years ago. He was never involved in our lives and never even paid child support; we barely had any kind of relationship.

A few days ago, my father's mother called me. She said collection notices for his loans are coming and that this needs to be settled. Naturally, she refuses to hear a word about paying them back and expects my sister and me to handle it.

Am I legally obligated to pay these debts, and on what grounds?

I read somewhere online that debts are only settled up to the value of the estate being inherited. Is that true? What does that mean here, considering my father had zero assets other than this debt?

One more thing: there was no formal probate process. People told us there was no point in opening one since there was no estate to settle, and they didn't want to waste money on unnecessary legal fees.

Thanks.