I've been financially responsible my entire adult life, and while I don't want to see debt as a dealbreaker, and I wouldn't break up with him over it, a part of me wants nothing to do with his debt. Also, I worry about what this says about his financial habits.
I'm sorry you're dealing with this. Having a financially irresponsible parent creates real anxiety, and you deserve clarity so you can plan your own future. Here's the good news: You are not responsible for your father's debts when he dies. Period. Debts die with the debtor unless you've co-signed loans, have joint credit cards, or are a joint account holder. Don't do any of those things.
I've been with my girlfriend for three years. I make three times what she does. I also have zero debts because of a lucky break with getting a sports scholarship. My girlfriend, on the other hand, went to a private school with high student loans. She is lucky to be in a loan forgiveness program if she teaches in a low-income school district for a period of several years, but she still has high monthly payments. She also has maxed-out credit cards.
In the survey, 45% of artists reported that they earned less from their practice in 2025 than they did last year. (image of Gustav Klimt's "Death and Life" (1915) public domain CC0 BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons , edit Lakshmi Rivera Amin/ Hyperallergic) Findings from a new survey for artists report that 56% of participants are working through debt. That statistic climbed to 59% for those with gallery representation and museum shows under their belt.
On a December 4 episode of The Dave Ramsey Show, a caller named Michael, 27, sought help after falling behind on nearly all his bills. Raising his 17-year-old brother for four years while working as a door-to-door roofing salesman, he'd accumulated $35,000 in debt from a car lease, credit cards, and charge-offs. His commission-based income ranged from $3,000 to $3,500 monthly during the slow season, barely covering his $850 rent and other expenses.
"It's funny: the money [that] they have is all in the ether," she says. "It's never really in their hands. They're always in debt or in credit, or they're owed, or they owe money - vast amounts of it. And of course, some of it does end up in their hands, and they'll spend it like mad on items that you wouldn't think of ever buying in your lifetime.
A controversial businessman, Darren Campbell, who accumulated over £450,000 in debts before his company's liquidation, is hinting at a comeback after an AI suggested he travel to Bali.
Londoners owe 1.4 billion in unpaid council tax, an increase of 11% in just one year, emphasizing the severe impact of the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.
According to the New York Fed, superprime U.S. borrowers-those with credit scores above 760-who carry unpaid student loan balances are expected to see their credit scores drop by an average of 171 points this spring.
