How can I help my sister-in-law work out her money difficulties?

She owes about $30k in credit-card debt. It started as about $10k several years ago, but it got out of hand, she couldn%26#039;t pay it, and completely stopped paying the cards altogether. Now with fees, etc she has about $30k of pain. She won%26#039;t even talk to the companies anymore. She can%26#039;t declare bankruptcy because it no longer applies to credit-card debt. She has some psycho-therapist who has told her she doesn%26#039;t have to work any more because she has mental problems (I personally do not believe this). Once she had that in hand, she started pulling disability.

Now my mother-in-law pays for her apartment, and she pays for her own food / entertainment. She spends most of her day playing video games and watching DVDs. She won%26#039;t even think about getting a job because %26quot;if she ever gets sick, she won%26#039;t be able to go to work, then she%26#039;ll lose her job, then she%26#039;ll get depressed, etc. Why even bother getting the job?%26quot;

How do I help her?

How can I help my sister-in-law work out her money difficulties?

first of all you have to realize that there are many people out there who DO have mental illness problems and can not hold down a job for just that reason.... and if social security granted her disability, there must be a real issue. Social security has a team of doctors and experts who make these decisions based on medical history... Social security does not hand out money to everyone who applies. It%26#039;s NOT EASY to get, especially with a mental illness diagnosis...

So now that you understand a little about social security for the disabled...

You can%26#039;t save your sister in law. If she doesn%26#039;t pay the bills, it will be on her record forever. It%26#039;s NOT your problem. Perhaps the debts will just go away someday, i dont know? In the meantime, a social security income can%26#039;t pay them off... And debtors are not allowed to garnish social security income that i%26#039;m aware of....

So the worst that will happen is your sister in law will have horrible credit.

The best thing you can do is encourage her to find a part time job, or even work from home. I sell art on ebay for extra income. It gives me something to %26quot;work for%26quot; in my spare time and keeps my mind occupied.

Trouble is, you can%26#039;t force the sister in law to do anything she does not wish to do. So perhaps encourage her, and urge her once in a while, then go about your business and take care of YOU.

How can I help my sister-in-law work out her money difficulties?

pull all her dept into one loan therefore lowing her repayments. try and get her to get a part time job and repay 50% of the job pay into the dept. the job plus disability payments will give her a good income.

How can I help my sister-in-law work out her money difficulties?

The best way for you to help her is to not give her any money. Don%26#039;t cosign anything for her, don%26#039;t get involved in her financial situation. She has made her choices, and she needs to deal with the consequences.