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Must My Husband Sign for My Credit?
By Jill Terry
 Federal
law says that you, as a married or unmarried individual, are
entitled to individual credit if you qualify under a bank's
credit standards.
So why is the bank asking for your husband's signature?
It depends. The bank may be justified, but then again, it
may not. It's a good idea to know the law before you apply.
Otherwise, you may be indebted in ways you didn't intend.
Unsecured Credit
When you request credit that isn't secured by any collateral,
you're telling the bank that your income is sufficient to
repay the debt. If the income you disclose is what you earn
on your own, yours is the only signature required on the application
and promissory note. If the income you disclose is yours and
your husband's, then your husband (depending on which state
you live in) will probably need to co-sign all the documents
with you. If you live in a community property state (Arizona,
California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington,
and Wisconsin), the bank may need your husband's signature
even if you are relying your own income alone to repay the
loan.
Secured Credit
If you offer collateral that is jointly owned by you and
your husband (i.e., car, home, real estate), and you live
in a community property state, the bank can request that you
both sign the promissory note (but this varies widely from
state to state). If you don't live in a community property
state, then your husband probably only needs to sign the legal
document that allows the bank to access the collateral in
the event that you don't make your payments. Typically, this
kind of legal document is a deed or lien; it is not the promissory
note.
Business Credit
If you are a small business owner applying for a loan,
the bank should not require your husband to sign any documents
other than those that grant the bank access to the collateral.
Again, community property laws vary widely on this point,
so be sure to find out from your state's banking regulator
what your spouse needs to sign.
Summary
Banks will sometimes attempt to get as many signatures
as possible on as many documents as possible, believing this
is the only way to protect itself in the event of defaulted
loan payments. This practice of obtaining excessive signatures
(and taking too much collateral) is based on the banking world's
outmoded belief in an "abundance of caution," a catch-all
phrase that dates back to the days before there were banking
laws and regulations.
When applying for credit, know what kind of credit you want
and be informed about what's required to obtain it. Barring
any peculiar community property laws, your ability to get
credit without your husband's signature is a right protected
by the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.
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