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bailey827 · Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:55 pm

Hello, we are new to the forum and are hoping to get help. My boyfriend and I are planning to get married, but first we want to catch up on his debts. We have lots of questions about where to start, so we apologize for such a long post. He has about $15000 in debt. Most of which is in collection, but a few are still with the original creditor. Most of the debt is Medical and Auto Loan/Lease related. In addition, there are some credit card, utilities, public transit and parking fines, all in collection. We already have a plan to pay this off by the end of 2009. We have prioritized the debt that is accruing interest first, followed by the newest to oldest debt. Currently none of these creditors/CAs are actively contacting him. We live in Colorado, however his debt is from when he lived in Illinois & Colorado. Now that you have the histor…let’s start with the questions.

Our first question is related to the affects on my credit. If we haven’t paid off his debt by the time we get married, how does that affect my credit? Can the creditors/CAs come after me? In the future can we just obtain credit under my name and not his? Or once we are married would they look at both our credit history?

Here is our plan based on what we have read on this site so far. Once we have saved enough money to pay off a particular creditor/CA, we will initiate contact. For original creditors we plan to contact them by phone and see what they are willing to negotiate and then send a Debt Settlement Letter. (Note, all mail to creditors/CAs will be sent certified/return receipt.) For CA’s, we will contact them via a DV Letter. After we receive their response, we will respond back with a Debt Settlement Letter. How do we know what the settlement should be? Will they send back a settlement recommendation with the DV response? Or after the DV should we contact them via letter requesting a particular settlement? Or should we just propose in the Debt Settlement Letter? In a Settlement Letter if we state “the payment will result in complete discharge of the debt” does that mean they have to remove it entirely from his credit history? We are also very confused on SOL. Is it appropriate to ask the CA in the DV Letter to prove the SOL has not expired? Also, is it appropriate to request verification or a copy of any judgment in a DV?

Is this the right approach? Have we missed anything? Are we crazy for paying all of this off when the creditors/CAs aren’t even trying to contact him?

Thanks so much for all of your help. And we promise to update the forum with what we learn through this process.

Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 9:21 pm

You are off to a good start and you have come to the right place. There alot of people on here that will give you great advice. It sounds like you have done your homework and you must have read the DIY section.

I know in my case my credit situation (which was in poor condition when I got married) did not affect my husbands. The house we bought was with his credit, I was only listed on the deed because I was his spouse, the old saying goes "it takes one to buy but two to sell" is true.

I don't know if you have already done this or not but pull all 3 credit bureau reports to make sure that everything is accurate. I wouldn't say that you are crazy for trying to pay anything off, just make sure it doesn't reset the clock or reage the debt. If it close to the statute of limitations for it to fall off I would just let it go, (that is my opinion only)...good luck

Hang in there and someone else will be along.

Guest · Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 5:00 am

Personally, I think you are a fool for paying off the debts of your boyfriend. I have a feeling that when the debt is gone and the shine has worn off the relationship you will be short a bunch of money and a boyfriend.

Never pay the debts of your boyfriend until you are husband and wife. Then attack the debts.

I would personally pile up the cash in anticipation of paying the debts off after the wedding. Once you are married, send them the payment day 1.

JMHO,
New

Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 6:57 am

First, because you have never/do not live in a community property state, you will never be responsible for your husband's individual debts. They cannot come after you just because you're married, and they cannot report on your credit. (The only ramification is that if he dies while he still owes the debt, then they can sue "his estate" in probate and get paid before any of his assets are passed on to you).

After you're married, you will both continue to have separate credit files, and you can still incur debt "on your own" and apart from each other. The only times you will both be responsible for a debt, is when you both sign as joint debtors.

When ever you do apply for new credit, Regulation B specifically states that they cannot force you both to sign just because they know you're married. However, if you apply individually, then you can't throw your husband's income into the mix -- so they will approve or deny your credit application based solely on your own qualifying factors and ability to repay. In essence, if you are individually taking on the credit of two people, then your debt-to-income ratio may spike out (or too many new accounts), and will give them reason to turn down your application.

I admire your commitment to pay this all back. I think it's a good plan to start off your marriage without the burdens of another person's debt. See, all those debts may be "dormant" now and not calling him, but sooner or later the beast will awaken. If you share a joint checking account and put your money into it, they may be able to get a judgment against your husband and seize that bank account later on in life.

Your plan almost exactly mimics how I got out of debt several years ago. My creditors weren't calling me at all, but I just wanted to pay it so if wouldn't come back later. I saved up my money, and one by one I called and settled with each of them.

Most of these places will not out-right offer you a settlement - after all, they want to get paid-in-full. It will be up to you to propose a settlement and see if they accept. How much they will accept really depends on how old it is and their policies. I would say 75-85% is usually a good number that they will jump at, anything less will take haggling.

You could also propose in the settlement how the outcome will affect his credit. Maybe they will agree to remove it entirely, or else they may report "Paid Collection" or "Settled for Less Than Full Balance". My own company policy is that we will only agree to delete the tradeline if you pay in full -- if you want to settle then we will report that fact to the bureaus.

DV's are good for the CA's. You can ask about proving SOL, but they really aren't required to do that unless they were actually suing you.

bailey827 · Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 4:12 pm

Thanks for all the feedback and information. As we are starting to mail out our first round of letters, we are noticing some of our CAs are not listed on the Creditor Database. How should I submit their names and addresses so other people have access to the information in the future? Also, once we hear back from them, I'll be glad to share that experience as well.

Thanks Again!

Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 7:03 am

Contact information for each CA reporting on your credit report should be listed on the report. If it's not listed in the individual tradeline, look down at the bottom of the report. If all else fails, give us the names. We'll find you the contact details.

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