A cautionary tale - and why I'm SO ANGRY

[m1and1m]

How can they charge interest on a charge off? I thought of it was a charge off you pay the agreed upon amount and there's a credit report ding, but they couldn't come back for more money?
It's been awhile since I've dealt with that so I could be confused, but I'm def asking DH about this in the morning. He used to be in that line of work.

[llh0211]

C

[madDawg228]

Ugh, sorry that that loser managed to pop up in your life again. I hope that was the last debt!

[Deleted]

It's just so insane and rage inducing! Yeah, you shouldn't have listed the debt that way and the lawyer should have caught that, but still. HOW THE EFF CAN ONE ADULT LEGALLY OPEN A LOAN/ACCOUNT UNDER ANOTHER ADULT'S NAME/OWNERSHIP WITHOUT PROOF SUCH AS A POWER OF ATTORNEY?! This was a CREDIT UNION you say?! They *NEVER* should have allowed that!! Doesn't matter if you're married, even joint accounts require BOTH PARTIES to sign. Although from his douche-levels I have no doubt he wouldn't blink at forging your name, it seems in those kinds of instances you sign the paperwork right there in front of an employee. I just...I just can't comprehend.

[dana86]

I know its the last thing you need to deal with but FIGHT IT! Married or not a person should not be able to open an account in anthers name like that. I know others can open an account in their name and then add someone on a secondary without having them there but thats for regular account not a loan type account. So no. Wording of the divorce or not the bank shouldn't have allowed him to come in and use your info to open anything.

[MrsPotatohead]

Ugh I'm so sorry.

The crazy thing is that I just heard this story on the radio the other day komonews.com/news/local/it-seems-crazy-womans-scooter-sold-while-shes-still-recovering-in-hospital

Sort of a tangent, it just reminded me of your situation, thinking that this woman couldn't even get her comatose friend's scooter out of an impound lot and your H can take out huge loans without you knowing!? Hopefully this is over now!

[Beeps (WOT?*)]

Before talking to the credit union, talk to an attorney or credit advisor.

If it's not on a credit report and it's 14 years old, can they really hold it over your head? If so, I'd seriously look at another C.U. Your CURRENT credit situation is what should have bearing. All the old charge-offs, everything that's over seven (or ten) years old should have rolled off your credit reports by now, and what you're currently holding as credit, your current payment history, etc. are what they should be looking at. If you have a fourteen year old charge-off, that should be absolutely irrelevant.

Except, if you've been contacted or promised to make payments at some point within the last seven years, that starts the clock tolling again, and you've got another seven years for it to sit on your credit (and other) reports. Which is why I say talk to a credit advisor or attorney rather than the credit union (and promising payment or even discussing the account with them, which may start the tolling again.)

If it's not on any credit report...screw it.

If it's on your credit reports or holding up this loan and you can't get similar terms elsewhere, negotiate a smaller payment rather than the $1K loan and $5K interest and have it removed from your credit report as a condition of payment. Or notated as disputed debt, paid in full.

[Beeps (WOT?*)]

If it's only within their walls, what the heck? If you have otherwise good credit, and you have good credit with them, I am totally giving them the side-eye. You are a responsible adult who has made significant progress, improved your PERSONAL credit, erased a significant amount of debt, have cleared your credit (minus this one possible hiccup that is FOURTEEN YEARS OLD!) When will you catch a break? It's like "LeBron is and will always be a traitor because he moved to Miami and no matter what he does he'll never truly be able to atone." (Sorry, a few years in Cleveland and seeing multiples of that response from Clevelanders when asked "does this make up for him leaving?" after last night's game is annoying me.)

It's a miserable $1,000 loan that is a decade and a half old, with you having worked hard to clear up your history, a history that YOU AREN'T EVEN RESPONSIBLE FOR! is getting me angry on your behalf. But it doesn't help that I was in your situation post-divorce as well. My credit was totally trashed and it took me years to get it back up to where I could even get a cell phone. And believe me, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that my credit score went up from 400s-500s to high 700s without me even realizing it as I worked to clear it up.

Good luck and have a drink on me.