*grumble*bitch*grumble*

The Husband Unit and I are paying off old debts and collections to clean up our credit before we buy a house this fall. I know these negative items will still be on our credit report, but at least they will be paid in full.

Out or 9 delinquent accounts, I was calling to pay #8 today. It was a Best Buy credit card with a $700 credit line that Rob had and maxed out before we married. He failed to tell me about this credit card for a couple of years (don't get me started on how pissed I was the day I found out). Late fees resulted in an overdraft of the credit line, which resulted in overdraft fees that snowballed to a current balance of approx $1400.

I called them today to negotiate a settlement. They refused to speak to me because I was not the card holder. No big deal, I've encountered this before. I asked if she could put me on hold and call Rob for authorization to speak to me. Usually, creditors are happy to do this, as all they need is verbal permission from Rob to talk to me, as I'm the one who handles the money. This bitch said no. She was incapapble of making outgoing calls.

So I get off the phone and I call Rob at work and give him the # to call. He calls me back 10 minutes later. They wouldn't allow him to give verbal authorization. They have to have a formal letter of authorization from him for me to be able to make changes to the account.

WHAT THE FUCK?!?! This isn't an issue of granting Power of Attorney over an estate. It's a fucking credit card debt gone to collections and I'm trying to PAY IT!!! Evidently they don't want our money that badly.

It just pisses me off. Rob will have to make the call and pay the debt himself, and his negotiation skills are nonexistant. That's why I'm the one who does things like this. I don't take 'no' for an answer. A few days ago, I talked a creditor down to $510 from $1262. Now THAT'S SKILL.

In any case, by the end of the week, we'll be debt free. Er, until we buy a house, that is.