Question:
Dear Steve,
I am the trustee of my mother’s estate. Because of caregiver expenses, she owes Bank of America $18K and had very little cash. I want to settle with them for less than the full amount but she died in October and I have not heard from them yet.
What should I do? Should I contact Bank of America or wait for them to contact me? I don’t want this to drag on for a year because there are heirs and they are getting antsy.
Thank you!
Maria
Answer:
Dear Maria,
First off, I’m sorry to hear about the passing of your mother.
If you have not already followed the advice in this article I would suggest you read it and take the steps described.
The most important issue for Bank of America is if your mother’s estate has enough money to satisfy the debt. If not then you have a good reason why they should settle the debt for less than what is owed. I would not wait for Bank of America to contact you. Let’s get this estate closed and dealt with instead of leaving open items.
I do know Bank of America, like many banks, does monitor the Social Security death report. So if your mother’s death was reported to Social Security then Bank of America is already aware. But that is not an excuse to wait to hear from them.

You are not alone. I'm here to help. There is no need to suffer in silence. We can get through this. Tomorrow can be better than today. Don't give up.
Do you have a question you'd like to ask me for free? Go ahead and click here.
- Plastic Pandemic: US Credit Card Debt Surges Nearly 20% in Q1 2021! - May 12, 2023
- The IRS Resumes Collections Notices: What You Need to Know Before It’s Too Late - May 12, 2023
- How Can I Deal With Payday Loan Debt? - May 12, 2023