Sudden widow, clueless about finances, significant unsecured debt
Hopefully this is a good forum for advice for my 61yo mom after my dad’s passing.
Lost dad to suicide 2 weeks ago (retired first responder - check in on the strong ones in your life). He had a $4k/month county pension (and health insurance), $600 state pension, $2.5k social security payment. 401k has been spent.
They owe $208k on the house (where it happened…). 2 cars and 1 camper paid off. 62k in credit card debt. He was definitely “on the credit card float”, paying bills with cards then paying minimum and a bit more when he could. Ran his social security # on CreditKarma and all 62k is in his name only. We live in Georgia. Mom has a serious illness and will likely ultimately need nursing home care.
How can I help my mom plan and keep her protected? She is absolutely clueless about finances and really life in general… dad did everything for her. I want to support, but I know it’s best that she learns how to do everything without him. Where do we start?