Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Pennsylvania

Re: Subject

When a person dies, the debts owed by the person are still owed by the estate of the person. If the person has left money, the creditor can sue the estate of the deceased for the money. Assuming that the suit is filed before the assets have been distributed, the creditor has the right to collect. However, the creditor hospital does not have any right to assets not obtained with the deceased's money nor from the wife's independent income. If the deceased leaves only a home which was held by both as husband and wife, I believe that the house becomes the wife's automatically upon death. At that point, the hospital could sue the estate, but there would be no money in the estate.