Ah yes, Consolidated Credit, the non-profit group that was going to help me through my financial problems, and everything would be rocking sunshine. I have a special place in my heart for Consolidated Credit, the place where all my hatred is hidden because these buttholes made me lose a great job opportunity.
Basically, they are a non-profit debt management company that promises to take all your debts and combine them into one big happy payment. I was introduced to them when I called Chase and asked them about hardship programs. Apparently, you have to go through this hell to get any kind of help from Chase.
I spoke with an enthusiastic guy named John, who originally told me is he was calling me from Chicago, and an hour into the conversation started talking about how the weather was in Arizona. He had a bit of charm in his voice, and if I hadn't been screwed over so many times, I would have been taken in by his fake charm.
We started the conversation by having me explain what brought me into my current financial state. It was pretty clear with John's replies that he was attempting to somehow bond with me. In reality, you knew he was probably just checking Facebook while listening to me tell him a few of my problems.
Then we went over my credit card accounts. He asked for the totals, the interest rate, and the minimum payments. I figured they would have all this information from a credit report provided from Chase or something, but I was wrong.
After we went through all of this, John started prying into my personal life. I had to tell him how much money I made, how much I spent on utilities, how much I spent on food, how much I spent on personal items, fast food, etc. It was really exciting to tell him that I had a budget of around $6.00 a month on food.
Then came the exciting part. John knew my situation was bad. He even said "If I was in your shoes I would look into bankruptcy...but since we're here.." John told me what he could cut the interest rates to for all my cards, if I was accepted into the program. The interest rates he gave me were pretty much 50% of the rates I was currently paying. He crunched some numbers, and gave me some figures. I could have all of my credit card debt paid off through Consolidated Credit in five years, and all it would take would for me to spend 60% of my monthly income. Add in the 25% for my mortgage, and I was left with 15% of my monthly income to provide for a family of four. Just for the record, my income is $2040 a month after taxes.
I started asking questions about the program. For participating in the program, I was paying this non-profit company $50. I couldn't understand how I didn't qualify for the free program, considering I was providing for a family of four. The best part was when he told me that some of the creditors might now agree to the the program's terms so my payment could actually be higher.
I told John no thank you. For the next couple of months, John would call me asking if I was still interested in the program. Most of the time, I would let it go straight to voice mail. Eventually, I figured John would get the idea and quit calling me.
So you are probably wondering, how do Consolidated Credit cause me to lose a job? I finally caught a break and got an interview for a perfect job. It was more money, better benefits, etc. Everything was looking great. The job was in my specialty, and with my five years of experience, I was literally the ideal candidate for the position.
I had taken my phone into the building, because if I was to call them when I arrived. Because I share my phone number with very few people, and because I work midnight shift, I NEVER get calls during daylight hours. I had not thought of powering my phone down.
The interview went fantastic. We were talking about a potential start date, and who I would be working with. I was the happiest I had been in months, possibly years. The panel of interviewers were answering some questions I had, when suddenly I felt my phone start to vibrate.
"ASSHOLE CALLING... YOU HAVE AN ASSHOLE CALLING"
For whatever reason, I set up a special ringtone for John from Consolidated Credit. Upon hearing the ringtone, the room fell silent. Everyone that was smiling now had one of those "Well you just screwed yourself out of a job!".
Two weeks later, I called to ask about the job. I was told I was not chosen basically, because of what had happened with my phone. I know its my fault for having the ringer on, but still.. I will always have a hatred towards this debt management program.
The best part is, that was the very last time John tried to call me.
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