He's 62 With No Retirement

Summary

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Podcast Summary: The Ramsey Show Highlights

Episode: He's 62 With No Retirement
Date: March 14, 2026
Host: Ramsey Network (Dave Ramsey, Ken Coleman, others)
Duration: ~8 minutes (non-ad content)

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Episode Overview

In this episode, a caller seeks guidance on how to help his 62-year-old father, who faces imminent retirement with little savings, mounting medical debt, and high expenses despite earning over $100,000 annually. The hosts break down the real challenges his dad faces, discuss practical solutions, and address the emotional complexities of helping family members who may resist financial coaching.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Understanding the Financial Situation

• The caller (Josh) reveals his father is 62 years old, earns over $100,000 a year, but has only around $3,000 in checking and high living expenses.
• Medical debt to the tune of $30,000–$40,000, resulting from high deductibles and out-of-pocket expenses over recent years, has depleted any savings.
• The father is recently divorced and now solely responsible for his financial future.

Notable Quote:

"He's worked all his life and he makes six figures and he saved no money is what we're really dealing with."
— Dave Ramsey [02:07]

2. Budgeting and Expense Awareness

• The hosts emphasize the urgent need for a detailed, written budget. The dad consistently spends about $4,000/month but can't account for the rest of his income.

• Dave Ramsey uses a business analogy to underline the importance of tracking money:

  "If you took over a company that was bringing in a hundred thousand dollars a year and spending $48,000 a year and they didn't know where the other money was going, the first thing you would do is they need a better system. Right. They need to know where their money's going."
  — Dave Ramsey [03:42]

• The hosts are adamant: expenses need to be cut, and cash needs to be piled quickly. Living with vague or loose money habits will lead to poverty in retirement.

3. Potential Real Estate Judgment

• The caller introduces a new issue: the dad may face a $500,000 judgment from a failed real estate investment, where he was one of five partners.

• Dave reassures that since the father lacks substantial assets, collectors will likely focus on other asset-holding partners.

  "There is zero chance they're going to get any money out of your dad. Zero. He has no money. And if they start putting lien on his stuff, he'll just file bankruptcy."
  — Dave Ramsey [05:02]

• The advice: Don’t declare bankruptcy if not pursued directly. The priority now is to “stack cash” and focus on building stability.

4. Behavioral and Emotional Barriers

• The real problem isn't lack of knowledge or income, but behavior and choices — a theme repeated throughout the episode.

• The hosts diagnose the real estate deal as an act of desperation, a “Hail Mary” motivated by fear of retiring without savings.

  "You know why he did the real estate deal? Because he was desperate and scared and thought he was going to retire bankrupt."
  — Dave Ramsey [06:15]

• The change required is behavioral, not mathematical. The hosts reiterate:

  "Personal finance is 80% behavior. It's 20% head knowledge. The problem with my money is the guy in my mirror."
  — Dave Ramsey [07:56]

5. Role of Family and Boundaries

• Ken Coleman chimes in with an emotional reality check: Josh cannot force his dad to accept help, and must be prepared to set boundaries if his father refuses guidance.

  "At some point, you're going to have to talk to dad and see if he's willing to be guided or coached by his son. And if he's not, you're going to have to put up a boundary there, and it's going to be really, really hard."
  — Ken Coleman [06:35]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “You're living too high on the hog, as we say in Tennessee.”
  — Dave Ramsey [02:27]
• “If he doesn't pay attention, he's going to retire and eat Alpo.”
  — Dave Ramsey [04:05]
• “You probably got 10 years of good, hard work to do. And he could pile up several hundred thousand dollars...by managing very, very carefully.”
  — Dave Ramsey [04:11]
• “The tortoise wins the race, not the hare.”
  — Dave Ramsey [06:33]
• “The problem with my money is the guy in my mirror. If I can get him to behave, he can be skinny and rich, but he likes donuts.”
  — Dave Ramsey [07:59]
  • Ken Coleman: “The donuts are good though, Dave. They're really good.” [08:33]

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Key Timestamps

• 00:11 – Caller describes his dad's lack of retirement funds and income situation
• 01:14–02:07 – Discussion of how insurance works, real medical debt size, and root issue (lack of savings)
• 02:48–03:42 – Budgeting and the mystery of disappearing income; need for a written budget
• 04:06–04:20 – Path to a nest egg in 10 years with budget discipline
• 04:26–05:43 – Real estate judgment explained; likely creditor focus and advice against bankruptcy
• 06:19–06:33 – Behavior as root cause; steady, non-desperate actions advised
• 06:35–07:21 – Family coaching boundaries and emotional acceptance
• 07:56–08:33 – Personal finance lessons on behavior vs. knowledge; memorable “guy in the mirror” metaphor

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Takeaway

The episode delivers a clear, tough-love message: Even late in the game, with discipline, high income, and serious changes in money habits, meaningful progress toward retirement is possible. However, no plan will work until the individual is willing to confront personal habits and commit to lasting change. For loved ones hoping to help, compassion, coupled with clear boundaries, is critical — but ultimately, the choice to change lies with the person in financial trouble.

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Transcript

[A]

Zander shops all the top term insurance companies to save you money. Get [e-mail] calling relating to my dad.

[B]

He's 62, and about a month ago had a conversation with him about retirement and where he was with that, and I found out that he has a little over $3,000 to his name right now and a checking account. And he makes good money at his job, makes over 100,000 a year, but he has really high expenses and recent medical debt has wiped out a lot of his savings. So my question's relating to how can I help him start moving towards realizing an actual retirement in a timely amount of time?

[A]

Mostly it would be coaching him. Right. That's what you mean by help. Right? Showing him some things to do. Number one, why did medical debt wipe out his savings? Did he not have health insurance?

[B]

He does, but he has. He has a chronic health condition, and so his deductible is really high, and he has to. He has had a couple procedures over the past couple years that he's had to pay out of pocket for because his deductible didn't cover all of it?

[A]

Well, no. After the deductible, then copay kicks in.

[B]

Yeah. I mean, I don't know the specifics of this.

[A]

Well, that's how insurance. Here's how insurance works. The deductible, you pay 100% of the bills until you meet the deductible. After you meet the deductible, typically it's an 80, 20. After that, they pay 80% and you pay 20%. And so do you have any idea what his deductible is? Like 10 grand or something?

[B]

Yeah, it's pretty high. Something like that.

[A]

Okay, so he's gone through 20 grand by meeting the deductible two different years. And then he had a procedure beyond that that he owed 20% of that procedure. And that took some more money. Maybe another 10 or 15,000, we'll just call it. So maybe he's gone through 30 or $40,000. So he still didn't really have any money. Right, Right. I mean, he didn't go through 200,000 bucks. He went through 30 or 40.

[B]

That's correct.

[A]

Okay. All right. I'm just making sure that we get the table set here. So he's worked all his life and he makes six figures and he saved no money is what we're really dealing with. Yeah.

[B]

Yep.

[A]

Okay. And so is he single?

[B]

Yep. Yeah, my parents divorced a few years ago, so he's been on his own for a while.

[A]

Okay, well, if he called us on the air, we would say, get on a detailed written budget and pile cash. You make 100 grand. Well, my expenses are high. Cut your expenses. You're living too high on the hog, as we say in Tennessee. So what is his stinking expenses?

[B]

From what I know and he's shown me, he pays about 4,000amonth in expenses.

[A]

Okay, well, he makes 8,500 or 8,800.

[B]

So. Yeah, that's part of my dilemma, is I don't know where. I don't know where the money's going.

[A]

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[B]

I don't know where the money's going.

[A]

He doesn't either. Okay. So that, you know. So if you took over a company that was bringing in a hundred thousand dollars a year and spending $48,000 a year and they didn't know where the other money was going, the first thing you would do is they need a better system. Right. They need to know where their money's going. And so if you're going to coach him, he needs to know where his money's going. And if he doesn't pay attention, he's going to retire and eat Alpo.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

It's time to get your crap together. You're 62. You probably got 10 years of good, hard work to do. And he could pile up several hundred thousand dollars in the next 10 years making 100 grand. By managing very, very carefully, he could have a decent nest egg at retirement.

[B]

Yeah. There's a second part to this as well, if you have the time for it.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

He was recently involved in a real estate deal that went sideways, and there's a chance he could be looking at a judgment payment to a bank of around $500,000.

[A]

Well, that will bankrupt him.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

He hasn't seen $500,000 ever. Right. And so the only chance he's got there is to negotiate down. And do you have partners in that deal?

[B]

Yes, he was one of five partners.

[A]

Yeah. They didn't have him signed up because they thought he was going to pay. They had the Other guys signed up because the other guys had assets. They're not going to bother your dad. Yeah, they're not. I mean, there is zero chance they're going to get any money out of your dad. Zero. He has no money. And if they start putting lien on his stuff, he'll just file bankruptcy. They know they're not going to get money out of him. And by the way, they knew that when they got his signature because he was already a broke guy then. Right. So they must have been leaning on someone else's asset base to make this loan.

[B]

That's correct.

[A]

Yeah. So they're going after the. They're going after the rich guy, not the poor guy. That's what they do. If I'm suing them, I'm going after the guy that's got money. I want to get the money. I'm not going to bother your dad. That's a waste of paperwork.

[B]

Yeah. If they don't pursue him heavily, he shouldn't declare bankruptcy.

[A]

No, he doesn't file bankruptcy on what might happen if he has $200,000 saved and they're going to come get that. We'll have to talk about what we do. But he doesn't have any money today. And so what I'm going to do is not worry about that. I'm going to put that on the shelf and let it sit over there and cook, and I'm going to get my crap together and start stacking cash and get with a smartvestor pro and let's get this stuff filled up and get your expenses cut and quit spending money like you're in Congress. You know why he did the real estate deal? Because he was desperate and scared and thought he was going to retire bankrupt.

[B]

Yes. It was a Hail Mary.

[A]

Yeah. Exactly what it was. It's exactly what it was. It's a move of a desperate man. And so let me stop doing desperate things and let's start doing steady things. Steady, steady, steady, steady. The tortoise wins the race, not the hare. Yeah.

[C]

I just would encourage you, Josh. This is going to be really hard to hear and even harder to do. At some point, you're going to have to talk to dad and see if he's willing to be guided or coached by his son. And if he's not, you're going to have to put up a boundary there, and it's going to be really, really hard. And the reason you have to put up a boundary is because you can't make your dad do anything, and you're just going to have to really grieve that and then move on. So I hope that doesn't happen. But super clear in your heart and your desire to help, if he doesn't receive it, you're going to have to put up a boundary.

[A]

Yeah. So mathematically your dad has the ability to build a nest egg by 72. That's pretty substantial. But 62 years of sucky habits are in the way. So is he gonna look in the mirror and go, after 62 freaking years, I'm gonna grow up or not? And that's not up to you, is Ken's point. That's up to him.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, I need to come to Jesus moment.

[A]

Yeah, he does. Not you by looking in the mirror and going, you're the problem. It's not somebody. Nobody took advantage of him. And it's not medical. That's not the problem. None of these excuses are the problem. The problem is you make a lot of money and you piss it away and it's got to stop. And that's what it comes down to. Now, you don't want to say that to your dad, but that's what it comes down to. That's the math that we've got. And fixing the math is easy once the human being starts to get their crap together. But the humans are now the humans, they're an issue. But the math thing, it's pretty easy. So we say it around here all the time, personal finance is 80% behavior. It's 20% head knowledge. The, the problem with my money is the guy in my mirror. If I can get him to behave, he can be skinny and rich, but he likes donuts. It's a problem. And that's an issue. So, I mean, but it's a behavior thing. It's not a, it's not, it's not a lack of knowledge, it's not a lack of ability. It's not. That makes a hundred grand. It'll do it.

[C]

The donuts are good though, Dave. They're really good.

[A]

Shut up, Ken. Zander is the best place to find term life insurance to protect your family. Visit Zander.com for quotes today.