Is Co-Signing a Good Idea? Can You Do It Safely? - YouTube

Nope, nope.

No. No. No.

Nada.

Not happening.

Never.

Nuh-uh.

Nein!

Non.

Nunca!

Sore wa kenmeina doryokude wa arimasen.

How many ways I gotta say it?

WHAT IS UP, my fellow money minions?

My name is Troy. Also known as the Dollar Dude.

And cosigning a loan is stupid.

Spoilers!

Let’s talk about it.

But first I gotta ask you guys, how are you?

You doing okay?

Cause you’re looking great!

Your teeth are looking amazing.

Is that like a new…whitening gel or...?

Whatever that is, it’s working!

So yeah, you just keep on...keep on doing that.

I gotta start of with a massive thank you to everyone.

Since I started the channel last week, the response has been absolutely amazing.

In fact, more people have subscribed to this channel in one week than have subscribed to

my previous channel in 11 years.

And most of those subs were in the first 24 hours.

What is going on?

I guess that’s what happens when you actually put out some quality content once in a while,

huh?

Everyone I’ve talked to has been super nice and welcoming into the YouTube community.

Multiple people have reached out to talk about doing collabs and I've been approached for

possible sponsorships, which is insane.

It’s way more than I could have ever possibly asked for after just one video.

But hey, I’m still the new guy so I've got a lot to learn and a long way to go, so leave

a comment down below if you’ve got any tips and tricks to help a new YouTuber out.

So again, a big, big thank you to all the fellow Money Minions out there.

I’m going to try my best to somehow live up to this unbelievably high bar you guys

have set for me.

But I will promise you this - we are going to have some fun on this channel.

But anyway, cosigning!

So you’ve been asked to cosign a loan, right?

Maybe by your brother who wants to go back to school to become a chiropractor because

his degree in Humanities isn’t working out like he thought.

Or maybe it’s your best friend, trying to get a loan to open up a muffin top shop business

by the beach.

So whatever the reason, they’ve come to you, the responsible, financially dependable

person that you are (I assume this because you watch this channel) and asked you to put

your good name and reputation on the line to vouch for them and be a cosigner because

the big, scary, nasty lender won’t lend to them without one.

And you’re like.

I know this person.

They’re my family-slash-good friend.

They’re dependable!

They’re going to pay the loan back.

They just need a little help right now, and I’m going to be a good person and help them

out of their situation.

Yeah, that's probably not going to happen.

Here’s what you probably think happens when you co-sign a loan for somebody.

I vouch for this person, good sir.

Well, since you are a responsible, financially dependable person with a 4.0 GPA and perfect

teeth, so we’ll take you at your word that this person is trustworthy.

Absolutely.

Here’s what actually happens.

I vouch for this person, good sir.

Well, their credit’s so crap it would make a great bowling score and we wouldn’t lend

to them if they just won the lottery.

So, how about this - we’ll just put the loan in your name and give them the money.

Sound good?

Absolut - wait, what?

Sorry to break it to you but the bank already knows the person isn’t going to pay them

back.

They’ve got Ph.Ds on payroll who are way smarter and get paid way more than you or

me - and those guys have long determined a person with that type of history is too big

of a risk to lend to, and that’s why they need you, the cosigner!

I’m going to let you in on a little secret.

Lenders love to lend.

And if they won’t lend to your friend or family member then maybe, just maybe, there’s

a reason why they’re not so enthusiastic.

If the bank thought the person had even a halfway decent chance of paying them back,

they wouldn’t need you!

In fact, did you know that in case of default, when the lender already started the collection

process, they're not even required to go after the primary borrower first?

Let’s put ourselves in the shoes of the lender for a second.

Yeah, yeah I know….the evil lender, right?

Bear with me, I’m going somewhere with this.

You have someone apply for a loan, and their credit history is too bad to qualify, but

they have a cosigner.

So fast forward a year or so and the primary borrower defaults.

You’re owed that money, you’re a business, and you've got limited time, resources and

money to run that business.

So, do you go after:

A) The fiscally responsible beacon of society, who has steady employment, stable income,

and has already, by some miracle, agreed to be 100% liable for repayment of the loan?

…or...

B)

The broke-as-a-joke, bad credit motherlover who you didn’t want to do business with

in the first place?

Is this tough?

This is tough, right?

According to a survey conducted in 2016, 38% of people who cosigned had to pay some or

all of the loan back.

And I’m willing to bet 100% of that 38% didn’t expect to have to do that.

Even worse, 26% of cosigners say that the experience damaged their relationship with

the person they cosigned for.

So if someone asks you to cosign and you say no, they’re going to be pissed for like…a

day because you’ve slightly inconvenienced them.

But if you cosign and they default and all of a sudden your credit takes a big hit and

you’re getting collection calls at work and then now the person you cosigned for suddenly

isn’t taking your calls and you have to pony up cash to pay payments for someone else’s

stupid decision, you’re gonna be pissed for like….forever.

You’re going to be salty!

Like, top quality grade A sea salt.

Like - “never talk to that person again" type salty.

You don’t need that type of salt all up in your life.

Look, you really want to help someone out of a jam?

Help them find a lower cost alternative that they can save up for and pay in cash.

Or just completely make their day and give them the money to do whatever they’re trying

to do as a gift.

“But I don’t have the money to give them…”

And therein lies the issue.

Aren’t you glad you stopped by for these profound insights?

Moral of the story, don’t cosign.

And avoid salt.

And this one is done, guys, hit the like button if you - Hit the like button if you liked

it, or if you’re not yet a Minion, subscribe to the channel if you feel so inclined, we’d

love to have you.

Also, if you’ve got a question, finance or otherwise, let’s talk about it.

So until next time, my fellow Money Minions, my name is Troy and I will see you guys….next

Dollar!