I'm a co-owner / joint account holder on my 98 yo mother's checking account, and her POA. I pay her bills from this account. She also has 2 credit cards under only her name at the same bank. I pay the minimum due each month from the joint checking account. When she dies, will I have any liability for those credit card balances? Everything I read seems to indicate no. But, I want to make sure, as there will be nothing left to pay them with when she dies (all her income goes to AL facility). I don't want to be liable for her credit cards if I am a joint checking/ co-owner account holder. When I called bank today to verify I was a co-owner not just co-signer, they said there were no other accounts under my name, so definitely the credit cards are only under her name.
You are not responsible for your Mom's debt, but her estate is. Thus, if there are assets in the estate, the Probate Judge will assign the required funds to the creditors.
My two children just went through probate for their deceased dad's estate which was mostly debt.
It was in South Carolina. He had around $40,000 in credit card debt which the probate attorney advised them not to pay. The banks did not file a claim against the estate and they ended up not having to pay it back out of the estate.
Their dad did however have tax debt to both the IRS for about $30,000 and to South Carolina for about $28,000 and they did have to pay those from the estate. The tax debts don't get written off. Hopefully your mom doesn't owe debt to the government.
Hope that helps.
Another consideration would be, will there be money left in the estate when she passes. The credit card company would have to file a claim against the estate to try to claim any outstanding balance.
My Mom has a Trust Account. If you do not have one I'd suggest you investigate that option. It stops Probate Court from coming in after she passes.
My Mom too has a separate personal bank account with credit cards. Once I got POA I closed her personal checking account. We only have the Trust now. Mom was the Executor I got her to sign off so I was the Executor. That took her name off all banking accounts. She can not even go to the bank and ask questions now much less get on the phone and use the credit card to charge stuff. I would not suggest you leave her with an option to call and buy things. I was worried my Mom would give all her money to some TV Evangelist or donate to the Hope Ship as her Dementia has destroyed her short term memory. I could not take that chance & don't suggest anyone leave that door open with a family member who has memory loss due to Dementia.
A Trust account stops Probate from coming in upon death. What a probate court is looking for are availability to get Death Taxes from the assets. The probate court doesn't like investments. They like cash. So they will sell investment assets to get everything into a cash situation were by they can take their cut and the family airs can divide up what is left. A Trust Account stops that. Just FYI.