Sunday, March 7, 2021

Protecting the Hyde Credit Rating

 I was in my graduation year of high school that was when High School Jackets came on sale for the graduating class. I wanted to buy one, so I visited the store where they were being sold, “ANDERSON BROS. MEN’S WEAR”. I tried on one of the jackets and wanted to buy it, but they were $25.00, and I didn’t have that much money. I asked Mr. Anderson, if I could put it on hold and make payments until I had it paid for and could take it home.

He asked me who my parents were, and I told him, Clarence and Floy Hyde. “You are Clarence Hyde’s daughter?” he asked. It was as if he wanted to verify I was.

I answered, “Yes, I am.” 

He then said, “I’ll tell you what. Any daughter of Clarence Hyde has credit at Anderson Bros. You go ahead and take the jacket home and I will set up an account for you and you can make monthly payments.”

Dad was surprised I was able to bring the jacket home that day. 

I told him about what Mr. Anderson said, Dad’s advice was: “It is now your responsibility to keep the Hyde credit in good standing. 

Make it your goal to pay off that debt before the due date.” And I did! 

Then, in 1979 when Dad asked me to type his personal history, I knew where Dad was coming from when he told me to make sure I paid the bill for my jacket and to do it early. I had read about his experience when he borrowed money to build his house in Raymond and realized how much it meant to him that we pay your debts to the last penny.

I am so thankful for a father who had high standards and expected us, his children, to follow his advice.  

1 comment:

Shirley Wilson said...

That is sure true. For the longest time I did not have a credit card, but the Bank told me I should have a credit card, just to build up my credit rating. So I had a card for a long time before I decided to use it. Once I started using it, I made sure it was paid off by the end of the month.

The bank will give people credit and they are counting on you not paying it off, then you have to go into the bank and admit you are to the credit limit they gave you. The Bank loves that. So the bank just ups your credit limit. If you get to the new credit limit, you go see them again and they up the limit more. Pretty soon your so far in the hole you can’t get out. What the bank is doing is, they know they are making more money off of you because of the interest you are accumulating on the unpaid debt. No, the bank does not get much interest off me. I pay the unpaid balance on my credit card by the end of the month, or by the due date of the card on my statement.
I can honestly say we have never had a mortgage loan, a car loan, or any other loan that I did not repay before the due date.
Another bit of advice is — NEVER co-sign a loan for another person. Not a relative, a good friend, your mother, or your girlfriend/boyfriend, ir your kids, no body. Because if that person does not pay the payments on time, the lender comes after you. When you co-sign for another person you are saying, if that person does not pay the payment or the balance of the loan, you will. So be careful. Just a word of advice.

Shirley Hyde Wilson