I understand now it was a monumentally stupid decision. Even back then, my gut reaction was to say NO, which I kick myself everyday for NOT saying that.
Don't kick yourself too hard. You're a great friend. The problem is, this guy is just an ********. I didn't mean to imply this was entirely your fault - you did make a bad decision, but you were also taken advantage of by a guy who would spin any story to get the money. He could have gone to his parents, to his family - hell, he could have offered to cosign for the loan. But he didn't, because he's a shifty ass.
At this point, I'm not worried about the extra money. I didn't realize it was "loan-sharking" if he offered it to me. I definitely don't planning on collecting the entire amount of that (and now that you've mentioned it's loan-sharking, I may not collect any). I was considering just taking $500 or something for all trouble in dealing with this over the past 6 yrs.
It's not loan-sharking in a legal sense (I'm not even sure that's a thing), I just meant in terms of a deal it wasn't exactly what you'd call standard. 1.6% of the principal isn't a bad rate, but you didn't adjust for reduction of principle.
I'm still trying to arrange a meeting with him to go over the total payments and agree to a final amount that he owes, perhaps even reducing it to entice him to pay me off sooner. That way, if he doesn't pay, at least i have a written document.
Yes, trying to get written confirmation of the terms of your current deal, just in case. But make sure it's only for the current amount. You've already mentioned that you don't really have adequate documentation for the full terms, so renegotiate it with him. I really think something like $50 a month with a percentage of his commissions until his loans are paid off is more than reasonable. If he renegs on this much more reasonable deal, you might want to consider telling his wife, now that you've mentioned that you're not actually friends. There is no friendship to consider anymore, just whether or not he'll pay you off.
I'm still trying to arrange a meeting with him to go over the total payments and agree to a final amount that he owes, perhaps even reducing it to entice him to pay me off sooner. That way, if he doesn't pay, at least i have a written document. Lastly, despite my wife pushing me to take him to court and teach him a lesson, I've been hesitating/holding off for the exact reason of jeopardizing the existing, though slow and sporadic payment structure that we do have going.
It's almost not worth going to court over $2,000, for a variety of reasons. First, just because he legally owes you the money does not mean he will pay you off any faster. You've already mentioned this guy's credit is crap, and credit doesn't get to be crap by someone reliably paying off legal debts. Second, it might cost you just as much in legal fees to fight him if they really get into it.
First of all, you're not going to get legal advice here. There are a couple lawyers on the forum, but what they tell you still can't be considered legal advice.
Never lend a friend more money than you're willing to lose. This kind of thing happens all the time, and the reality is you don't really have a leg to stand on here. You took out the loan and you have been making the payments - and that's really all that matters. As far as the bank is concerned, you owe that money. Your loan to him in turn is another issue, but without written documentation of the loan terms, you don't really have much. Worse, you've essentially said you were loan sharking him, with that $100 interest per month. You got played and you made a monumentally stupid decision. Plus, since you aren't charging him market loan rates, you may actually end up owing taxes on the loan if you take it to court.
Here is the reality: your friendship is basically over. You've mentally made the switch to being his creditor now, not his friend, and there is really no going back and it'll be very tough to fix that bridge in the relationship now that you've gotten to this point. He's dodging you because he knows he can get away with it and keep putting you off. He has no incentive to finish paying you off anytime soon, and he really has no responsibility to do so. If you look through RLA's archives, there are a few examples of things like this happening - you actually got off pretty easy (in one case, a group of friends opened up a business which failed, but only one of them put their name on all the documents, so the rest got off scott free). You've really been lucky to get any money back from him. Honestly, I think you're better off forgetting the money, and you certainly shouldn't do anything that would jeopardize his payments to you, because without a promissory note or a written deal you don't have much to go on to back it up. If he didn't want to tell his wife before, you have no idea what that situation would create - you may just stop getting any money because she could put a stop to it or he could lie to her about it with the same outcome.
If you want your money back, make the payments something that he really can't claim he can't make. Rather than trying to wring a hundred or three out of him every month or every few months, get what you can from him monthly. Maybe talk to him about a minimum monthly payment of $50, with the expectation that he ups it whenever he can. At the very least you're working towards making your money back.
It's not loan-sharking in a legal sense (I'm not even sure that's a thing), I just meant in terms of a deal it wasn't exactly what you'd call standard. 1.6% of the principal isn't a bad rate, but you didn't adjust for reduction of principle.
Yes, trying to get written confirmation of the terms of your current deal, just in case. But make sure it's only for the current amount. You've already mentioned that you don't really have adequate documentation for the full terms, so renegotiate it with him. I really think something like $50 a month with a percentage of his commissions until his loans are paid off is more than reasonable. If he renegs on this much more reasonable deal, you might want to consider telling his wife, now that you've mentioned that you're not actually friends. There is no friendship to consider anymore, just whether or not he'll pay you off.
It's almost not worth going to court over $2,000, for a variety of reasons. First, just because he legally owes you the money does not mean he will pay you off any faster. You've already mentioned this guy's credit is crap, and credit doesn't get to be crap by someone reliably paying off legal debts. Second, it might cost you just as much in legal fees to fight him if they really get into it.
TerribleBad at Magic since 1998.A Vorthos Guide to Magic Story | Twitter | Tumblr
[Primer] Krenko | Azor | Kess | Zacama | Kumena | Sram | The Ur-Dragon | Edgar Markov | Daretti | Marath
Never lend a friend more money than you're willing to lose. This kind of thing happens all the time, and the reality is you don't really have a leg to stand on here. You took out the loan and you have been making the payments - and that's really all that matters. As far as the bank is concerned, you owe that money. Your loan to him in turn is another issue, but without written documentation of the loan terms, you don't really have much. Worse, you've essentially said you were loan sharking him, with that $100 interest per month. You got played and you made a monumentally stupid decision. Plus, since you aren't charging him market loan rates, you may actually end up owing taxes on the loan if you take it to court.
Here is the reality: your friendship is basically over. You've mentally made the switch to being his creditor now, not his friend, and there is really no going back and it'll be very tough to fix that bridge in the relationship now that you've gotten to this point. He's dodging you because he knows he can get away with it and keep putting you off. He has no incentive to finish paying you off anytime soon, and he really has no responsibility to do so. If you look through RLA's archives, there are a few examples of things like this happening - you actually got off pretty easy (in one case, a group of friends opened up a business which failed, but only one of them put their name on all the documents, so the rest got off scott free). You've really been lucky to get any money back from him. Honestly, I think you're better off forgetting the money, and you certainly shouldn't do anything that would jeopardize his payments to you, because without a promissory note or a written deal you don't have much to go on to back it up. If he didn't want to tell his wife before, you have no idea what that situation would create - you may just stop getting any money because she could put a stop to it or he could lie to her about it with the same outcome.
If you want your money back, make the payments something that he really can't claim he can't make. Rather than trying to wring a hundred or three out of him every month or every few months, get what you can from him monthly. Maybe talk to him about a minimum monthly payment of $50, with the expectation that he ups it whenever he can. At the very least you're working towards making your money back.
TerribleBad at Magic since 1998.A Vorthos Guide to Magic Story | Twitter | Tumblr
[Primer] Krenko | Azor | Kess | Zacama | Kumena | Sram | The Ur-Dragon | Edgar Markov | Daretti | Marath