Dave Ramsey Caller Says Her Sister Wiped Out Their Parents’ Bank Accounts, Maxed Out Their Credit Cards And $450K Reverse Mortgage
A heartbreaking call to a recent episode of “The Ramsey Show” revealed a family tragedy that spiraled into financial ruin, elder abuse and a legal mess. Wendy told Dave Ramsey and John Delony that her sister financially exploited their elderly parents, drained everything they had and left their home in such poor condition it looked like “a meth house that squatters got into.”
Sister Took Control Before COVID
“There’s no easy way to say this, so I’m just going to jump right into it,” Wendy began. Her sister moved in with their parents just before COVID and slowly took over their home and finances. “My sister stole everything from my parents in their senior years,” she said. Wendy believes her mother died as a result of neglect, and her father, now in late-stage dementia, was hospitalized just days later.
Don’t Miss:
Wendy said her sister maxed out their credit cards, cleaned out their bank accounts, and burned through a $450,000 reverse mortgage. “[She] just abused them because they weren’t mentally and physically able to do anything about it,” she said.
“What a lovely girl,” Ramsey responded sarcastically. Delony added, “That’s heartbreaking.”
A Fight To Protect Her Dad
After her mother’s death and her father’s hospitalization, Wendy and her husband stepped in. It took her seven months of legal fights to gain conservatorship and protect what little was left. “He ended up homeless and living with my husband and I,” she said. They cared for him at home until his health declined and he was moved to a secure memory care facility.
Despite the house being trashed, it sold at auction and left $130,000 in surplus funds. Wendy was granted control of that money, but it immediately disqualified her father from Medicaid, forcing the family to switch to private pay for care. She used some of the funds to reimburse herself for legal expenses and care-related costs.
Trending: Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund Just Backed This Farmland Manager — Accredited Investors Can Join the Same Fund
A Will That Didn’t Count
The family’s will was not notarized and was deemed invalid under state law. “Every banking institution and everyone we dealt with said that it wasn’t valid,” Wendy said. That means, legally, her father’s assets would be split equally among the three siblings—including the sister who caused the harm.
Ramsey told Wendy to make sure the money is spent legally and completely. “Go prepay the nursing home with the conservator’s permission and put the rest in your pocket to recoup all of your time, your expenses, your legal fees,” he said. “I’m going to go buy him an $80,000 bed and put it in there. I’m serious. There’s not going to be any money left.”
The point Ramsey is making is that she needs to deplete the money down to where there’s nothing left, so she doesn’t have “a moral conundrum” about it.
See Also: Shaquille O’Neal Wants People to Take Heart Health Seriously — This AI-ECG Could Make That Easier
Letting Go Of Justice
Delony pointed out that Wendy was still emotionally burdened by the injustice. “You’re projecting future what-ifs and you’re trying to solve them and be heartbroken and angry in the present,” he said.
Ramsey agreed: “You’ve been running this over in your head. You burned a whole lot more calories on this than she has.”
Ramsey didn’t hold back when it came to describing Wendy’s sister: “She’s a horrible human being.” He added, “Parasites don’t eat as well as carnivores. They just don’t.”
“She didn’t get what she was after,” Ramsey said. “At the end of the day, she’s still a miserable hack.”
Wendy said she’s made peace with it: “I 100% have. I think I had a really hard time with the fact that she’s never been held accountable.”
“Let her carry that, not you,” Delony said.
Read Next: Have $100k+ to invest? Charlie Munger says that’s the toughest milestone — don’t stall now. Get matched with a fiduciary advisor and keep building
Image: Shutterstock