<prompt> Human: My mother has always been bad with money. She tends to spend without thinking. As a result, she has several maxed out credit cards, at least 60k in student loan debt, no assets that Im aware of, including no retirement account because she drained it in order to pay for school. The only upside is her earning power. Shes in the medical field and earns around 50 per hour. Her earning power has allowed her to stay afloat, but shes been skirting the edge of disaster for a long time though. i dont know her full financial picture, but she cant work forever. Im not even sure it would be possible for her to work her way out of all her debt, and thats not even considering she could become sick or disabled at some point. So what do I need to consider to avoid being dragged down in this situation? I dont think I need to worry about her credit cards, but do I need to worry about her unpaid student loan debt? What about when shes no longer working and able to pay for things on her own?  <response>: Given your specific question, I do not mean this as a joke - Encourage her to move to a state that lacks a filial piety law.Somewhat more seriously, figure out a long-term way to have her move in that doesnt involve her actually destroying your home-life - For example, Ive made plans for whichever of my parentsinlaws survive long enough, to move into a trailer on my back 40. Itll cost me about 60k up-front, but I can recoup that by selling it it off once they all die off. 