Although
the following story seems like a joke you would tell at a bar it’s actually
something that we encounter all the time. We’re going to hide the identity of
these people by calling them Bob and Mary.
Now
Bob isn’t a very likeable character and eventually Mary decides to call it
quits after five years of marriage. In the courthouse going through the divorce
proceedings it almost seems to Bob like the judge has a crush on Mary because
things just don’t seem to be going his way, after all, Mary was rewarded the
kids, the car and the house and poor Bob seemed to be just left with the credit
card debt.
Life
moved on with old Bob though, and even though his was living at a Motel 6 and
riding a skateboard to work he decided to not just to take it on the chin, but
better his attitude and his way of life. He saved every penny, paid off the
credit cards and put enough away for a deposit for a new home.
After
seeking out his trusted mortgage broker John, Bob walks in to his office all
ready to go. After licking his lips with the prospect of an assured loan John
enthusiastically pulls Bob’s credit. Low and behold, to John’s disappointment,
he sees a 550 credit score with countless auto and mortgage lates. Bob
dismisses this issue with wave of his hand as he says "Don’t worry about
those lates John, they don’t even belong to me, those are my ex-wife’s."
John explains that he can’t just ignore them as the credit report is what it
is. Bob says "You don’t understand John I was there at the court house, my
ex got everything, how could I be responsible for these loans still."
No
Bob, you don’t understand...
When it comes to divorce what a lot of people don’t comprehend, for obvious reasons, is that the divorce decree is pretty much worthless when it comes to debts. The creditors don’t care about it and the bureaus care even less. Why should they? They never agreed to the separation of debt, and they are much more likely to get their money if there are two people to go after instead of one. Sure, Bob could sue Mary for not holding up her end of the bargain, but suing someone who doesn’t have the money to pay their bills is relatively useless.
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