Trying to help my daughter...but I don't know where to begin

[NH_Mom]

I'm new to the forum and I'm reading as many of the posts as I can.

My daughter recently left her husband (bad bad situation). She had kept us in the dark about her situation but finally realized she needed to leave him. She & our 3 y.o. granddaughter are now living with my husband & I.

I had no idea that her financial situation had gotten so bad. They haven't paid the mortgage on their condo in 6 months, same for the condo fees. They are months behind on their utilities (only been paying small amounts when shut off is threatened). They have about $40K in credit card debt that they haven't paid anything on in months. (She has kept up with payments on one credit card because it is associated with her employer and she would lose her job if she were in arrears.) She has a car that she was behind in payment but we helped her catch up this week. She no longer has car insurance because of non payment.

We've already put out thousands in the past two weeks to help her (needed tires for her car / furniture for our spare room so they have a room to live in / retainer for an attorney to deal with custody & the divorce) but we don't have any more to give

I don't know where to start when it comes to bankruptcy, any and all suggestions would be appreciated.

[325Falcon]

Have her go talk to a lawer. If you are in the Keene area Doug Thornton seems to be a good guy.

[poorme]

Hey MOM!

First - it's important for you and your husband to be supportive, but also recognize this is your daughter's mess to deal with. You can't drive this "bankruptcy thing" for her. Secondly, if done right - the good news is everything will be okay!

She and ex have to get their act together regarding their ongoing relationship and finances. However, DD can file bk by herself. FInding free bk counseling by several local attorneys should help her understand what's required vs. what's not allowed. Start by reading all the sticky notes here and check out the offered links. Also, she should pull a copy of her credit report to get the full list of creditors, etc. as they ALL have to be listed. These days, filing is not always a quick process, as she will have to meet several preliminary requirements.

Good Luck.

[CindyLou]

You didn't say, but if she is a victim of domestic violence and has pressed charges against her soon to be ex then there may be funds available to her via victims funds. Hopefully this in NOT the case, but you said it was a very bad situation so I thought I would offer this information.

I really hope things get better for her and her little girl.