Can my late husband's debt affect my personal bank account? 12 Answers as of February 02, 2012

The first thing you need to do is talk to an attorney about your late husband's estate. If he had a will, you need to submit it to the probate court. If not, you can apply for letters of administration through the probate court.

Bankruptcy would not freeze your account and would insure that no debts can be linked to you including any deficiency when the bank forecloses on your home. But if you did not co sign for his debt, then you should not be liable for the credit cards.

The liens will go with the house. You need to see a lawyer to talk about filing for bankruptcy.

Your late husband's debt may affect his estate. Filing a bankruptcy will stop garnishments from your job or bank by a creditor.

Bankruptcy does not actually freeze one's bank account. A debtor will still be able to use his or her bank account as normal. However, a debtor's bank account is considered an asset of the bankruptcy estate as of the day of filing. This means the trustee can ask a debtor to turn over any funds held in the account on the day of filing that exceed any applicable exemptions. Certain assets are exempt from the bankruptcy estate either in whole or in part depending on value. You will want to consult with a bankruptcy attorney regarding the specific exemptions.

If the bank account is only in your name, then your husband's creditors should not be able to garnish your account. If both names are on the account then, yes, they could go into your account and get the money. You could file for bankruptcy to get rid off your debts. If you do so, you should be able to protect your wages and your bank accounts should not be frozen.

You can file a personal bankruptcy to discharge your debt and simply exempt your bank account.

Generally not. There is a family medical expense exception.

With $20,000.00 in debt and a house in foreclosure, Bankruptcy is certainly an option worth considering. What happens to your bank account depends on what state you live in, and how much you have in the bank. It will not be frozen, but if you have to much, you may lose some of it. However, it would be unusual to see somebody with a house in foreclosure, $20,000 in debt and the kind of large savings accounts that would cause problems. In terms of the details of your specific case, you really need to consult a Bankruptcy attorney. As for the house, you have indicated that it is in both of your names, which I assume means that both of you were on the mortgage. As a result, you do owe the mortgage, and could have a problem with any deficiency if you live here in Massachusetts. The liens from your husband's creditors should not directly affect you, assuming that they were truly his debts alone. They do have a claim against his estate, such as it is, which may affect you indirectly. However, if you file bankruptcy, those potential claims against you would get discharged as well. Another thing to consider is if you want to try to keep the house, it can be done under ch. 13. You would need to pay the mortgage going forward, but the arrears would be reorganized; the foreclosure would stop, and your husband's liens can probably be stripped off in the process. Here again, you need to sit down with a lawyer to figure out the true feasibility of saving the house.

In order to freeze your account, your deposit account would have to be at the same bank that you owe money to, or the bank would have had to have sued you and obtained a judgment against you. You may or may not be liable on your husband's debt depending on the type of debt and whether it was joint or you signed a guaranty. From what you are saying, it sounds like bankruptcy might be a good option for you.