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Legal Way of paying Someone else's Debt Anonymously

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Wellscha

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I know an acquaintance who's having financial troubles for a while, and refuses help from anyone around him, family, friends, everybody. He's a very stubborn individual who would rather go down in flames than seek help from anyone. Family and friends tried several times to reason with him but he hasn't budged. So is there a way to pay off his debts anonymously in a legal way?
 
Be careful because in some states, there is a limit on how much you can gift before taxes are incurred.

I think there is a federal limit as well.
 
Bad idea, he'll deduce it's coming from one of his friends or family and refuse to take the money.

Take the money out of the bank, be brutally honest with him and give him it in front of him. Tell him it's either he takes the money or you burn it.
 
Bad idea, he'll deduce it's coming from one of his friends or family and refuse to take the money.

Take the money out of the bank, be brutally honest with him and give him it in front of him. Tell him it's either he takes the money or you burn it.

Bad idea with prideful people.

If his bills are paid, he can't refuse anything lol, its paid.
 
I know an acquaintance who's having financial troubles for a while, and refuses help from anyone around him, family, friends, everybody. He's a very stubborn individual who would rather go down in flames than seek help from anyone. Family and friends tried several times to reason with him but he hasn't budged. So is there a way to pay off his debts anonymously in a legal way?

Ask him if he wants a loan, with a promissory note signed. He might be open to that?
 
Go into some gas stations telling them your story and that you really want to pay off his debt but he wont let you so you have this idea of a rigged scratch off that pays a little more then what his debt is or a little less to make it even less suspicious and even offer to pay the guy to help you.

Find a way to get your friend in there or buy a scratch off for him and profit.
 
Bad idea, he'll deduce it's coming from one of his friends or family and refuse to take the money.

Take the money out of the bank, be brutally honest with him and give him it in front of him. Tell him it's either he takes the money or you burn it.

Done that, he actually threw the money back and said "It's not your problem"

Bad idea with prideful people.

If his bills are paid, he can't refuse anything lol, its paid.

Exactly, the question is how to get access to his bills legally without his knowledge.
 
Wtf, threw the money back lol

BTW op I'm very much like your friend, I don't want to owe anyone anything, I feel like I can do everything without help
 
You can't force someone to accept your charity. Pride can be an ugly thing, but it's his choice if he wants to be miserable. As long as he isn't destitute and dying of sickness, let him be. In the event that one day he comes asking for help after exhausting every other option and falling on rough times, be magnanimous instead of rubbing his face in it. Like Johnny Rico's parents in Starship Troopers.
 
Wtf, threw the money back lol

BTW op I'm very much like your friend, I don't want to owe anyone anything, I feel like I can do everything without help

You can't force someone to accept your charity. Pride can be an ugly thing, but it's his choice if he wants to be miserable. As long as he isn't destitute and dying of sickness, let him be. In the event that one day he comes asking for help after exhausting every other option and falling on rough times, be magnanimous instead of rubbing his face in it. Like Johnny Rico's parents in Starship Troopers.

Then it isn't, unfortunately. You can't make the dude accept money.

It's really frustrating, his life would be completely changed if he just stopped being stubborn. It's solidarity from the people close to him, it's not a loan, it's not charity, we're not trying to one him up nor rub it in his face, we genuinely care.
 
Tell him it is a loan, he is just transferring his debt from the bank to you. Ask him to sign a note. Put 3% interest in it.
 
Hey, if it will help you any, I'm in significant debt, and more than happy to accept your offer of assistance :Ăľ
 
I know an acquaintance who's having financial troubles for a while, and refuses help from anyone around him, family, friends, everybody. He's a very stubborn individual who would rather go down in flames than seek help from anyone. Family and friends tried several times to reason with him but he hasn't budged. So is there a way to pay off his debts anonymously in a legal way?

I would say to not help if he is actively refusing fiscal help. He may even be planning a fiscally strategic bankruptcy. Let him be responsible for his own life.
 
I know an acquaintance who's having financial troubles for a while, and refuses help from anyone around him, family, friends, everybody. He's a very stubborn individual who would rather go down in flames than seek help from anyone. Family and friends tried several times to reason with him but he hasn't budged. So is there a way to pay off his debts anonymously in a legal way?

How much debt we talking -- for tax purposes.
 
You can call the bills directly and make payment to accounts.

I'm Almost sure you can call Sprint, enter the number and pay the bill. At T-Mobile they just ask for my number in person and ask me how much I want to pay. I'm sure cable would work the same. Electric bills can be paid if you have service address or a bill, it has the account number.
 
Careful how you proceed OP, this could end very badly.

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How much debt we talking -- for tax purposes.

Funny thing, we don't know exactly how much. But it's a lot, as in $50K to $100K+.

You can call the bills directly and make payment to accounts.

I'm Almost sure you can call Sprint, enter the number and pay the bill. At T-Mobile they just ask for my number in person and ask me how much I want to pay. I'm sure cable would work the same. Electric bills can be paid if you have service address or a bill, it has the account number.

Would that work with bank loans as well?
 
Funny thing, we don't know exactly how much. But it's a lot, as in $50K to $100K+.

40K is usually the tax free limit from a monetary gift. I would offer to give him a low interest loan instead and say that you are just trying to help him get away from the predatory interest rates he is probably having to deal with. But yeah unless that amount is mostly student loans he is going to be better off getting a bankruptcy case going then take your money.

Edit: Just wanted to clarify I think paying his bills without him knowing is a bad plan that will make him angry at all of you. Don't sit him down and try to force him to take money. Go to a place he is comfortable and talk to him about the situation and see if there is any way he will let you help him but don't be forceful or antagonistic. It may be that he has things already going.
 
Don't. He told you he didn't want the help, so don't force it on him.

Sadly these are the types of people that end up committing suicide. They feel so alone in their overbearing struggle. If people offer help, it only makes it worse as it effects their view of self worth.
 
Tell him it is a loan, he is just transferring his debt from the bank to you. Ask him to sign a note. Put 3% interest in it.

This is the best way of going about it. Trying to be sneaky is just going to put some heat on you that's likely to blow up later.

Nobody wants to be forced into doing what's good for them. Nobody. No matter what the circumstances may be.

If they still say no, just tell them you'll always be there to help out for them. And leave it be.
 
Do I have to pay taxes on the gift in California if I send my friend $3K-4K?

http://www.taxes.ca.gov/Income_Tax/specialind.shtml#Gifts

No tax owed. Most gifts are not subject to the gift tax, and most estates are not subject to the estate tax. For example, there is usually no tax if you make a gift to your spouse at your death. If you make a gift to someone else, the gift tax does not apply to the first $11,000 that you give that person each year.

No return needed. Generally, you do not need to file a gift tax return unless you give someone other than your spouse money or property worth more than $11,000 during a year.​
 
You can make a payment on someone else's loan or deposit money into someone else's bank account without any consent or knowledge of the person whose name the account is in and it is perfectly legal.

As long as you know what bank. You don't even need to know the loan number. Just say you want to make a loan payment John Doe's loan.
 
Exactly, the question is how to get access to his bills legally without his knowledge.
Call the electric/gas company and tell them you want to send a check but you don't have the account number. Or put his name and address on the "for" line.
 
You can make a payment on someone else's loan or deposit money into someone else's bank account without any consent or knowledge of the person whose name the account is in and it is perfectly legal.

As long as you know what bank. You don't even need to know the loan number. Just say you want to make a loan payment John Doe's loan.

This. I was under the impression this was the case as well. Same with other bills as long as you now the name and maybe the account number. I assume they'd want to know who you are though just in case a check bounces. I doubt they'd actually refuse the money but they would want to make sure it's coming form a legit place to some degree.
 
Going to be hard if you don't know his exact account info to pay off his debt anonymously. If you're not authorized on the account, they can't tell you what he owes. But they'll take payments from anyone.
 
For discussion's sake lets say tomorrow this happens:

A wealthy stranger walks into my bank, and says to the teller, "Madam, I would like to pay Mr. Ettie's entire mortgage, in cash. I have it here in my fancy briefcase."

He pays off my house. I don't know him, can't refuse the gift because I didn't know he was there. House is paid off, bank is happy. I am liable for the taxes for this strange gift?
 
For discussion's sake lets say tomorrow this happens:

A wealthy stranger walks into my bank, and says to the teller, "Madam, I would like to pay Mr. Ettie's entire mortgage, in cash. I have it here in my fancy briefcase."

He pays off my house. I don't know him, can't refuse the gift because I didn't know he was there. House is paid off, bank is happy. I am liable for the taxes for this strange gift?

You now fully own your home with a pile of equity, and can take a loan out at the bank to pay off the tax, with that loan obviously being significantly less than what you previously owed.

And then we enjoy a playthrough of U.N. Squadron!
 
Is there somewhere/some platform where I can play this game? One of my favorite SNES games of all time.

Sadly, it's probably never going to happen outside of the original release, due to licensing issues.
It's named "Area 88" in Japan, and based off a manga of the same name.

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