My e-begging has begun

[Kaylee]

and that certificate so you google will say secure
guesstimate $500+ for everything for 3 years but i'm not going to pay retail but will start the haggle about a month before

If they've been charging you for a cert, they've been BSing you.
Free "Let's Encrypt" certs have been integrated into cPanel for a while (i.e. longer than VD has existed).

Use that as one of your sticks when you're haggling.