By: Revanche

Puttin’ on the squeeze

January 31, 2009

I’m calling in that 5k loan that was earning “interest” for me by working off my dad’s debt to the borrower. Uh, yeah, so how does that work?

The borrower lent my dad money years ago during the beginning of our family’s rough times. A few years later, he asked my dad if he knew anyone with ready money to loan him and offered generous terms for interest. Instead of paying the interest himself, he asked my dad to pay his debt back by putting up the interest money, if a lender was found.

I thought it was weird because the amount seemed piddling when you considered he was running an import business. How could he not easily raise/borrow $5? I guess the man had credit problems on paper, but the opportunity to keep the money in the family was there and I took it. That was four years ago.

Now, Dad’s debt is “paid” down, and the principal is owed back to me. I know that business is bad for him, it is for everybody, but I can’t take the risk of waiting longer – I was dumb enough to make the loan sans paperwork. We didn’t set a due date for the money, either.

The whole thing was pretty weird. I don’t know this guy well personally, but he’s been fairly generous to my dad over the years. That’s not to say he was outright charitable, he simply tried to set him up with business opportunities when available. Originally concerned that people would assume I had money, I wanted to remain anonymous; Dad was the intermediary since he was involved by dint of the interest anyway.

Yeah, of the pantheon of my stupid money decisions…… anyway, no matter how it ends, I won’t be making that mistake again. (Knowing me, I’ll find a more original dumb decision!)

By virtue of his and Dad’s friendship, I’m pretty sure that the money’s coming back but there’s still a niggling doubt until that cash is in my hands. Since the debt Dad owed is more than square, there’s no need to stress any longer; contact has been made and he’ll be calling on Sunday to work out the terms of repayment (ie: the dropoff of money).

Time for that loan money to come home! (And potentially to be spent as moving money!)

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