My Mom Trashed My Credit Score When I Was a Kid

Summary

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The Ramsey Show Highlights

Episode: My Mom Trashed My Credit Score When I Was a Kid
Date: May 13, 2026
Host: Ramsey Network (featuring Ken Coleman & Jade Warshaw)
Theme: Escaping a Bad Credit Score—Why Credit Doesn’t Matter as Much as You Think

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Episode Overview

In this episode, a caller named Caitlin shares how her mother’s fraud tanked her credit score before she was even an adult. Ramsey personalities Ken Coleman and Jade Warshaw advise her on handling inherited debt, rebuilding financial confidence, and the Ramsey philosophy on life without credit scores. The discussion goes deep on the myth of the credit score “necessity” and practical solutions for major purchases without relying on credit.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Caitlin’s Background and Main Question

• Caitlin wants to consolidate her debt and fix her credit score in order to buy a vehicle and a house.
• She’s saved up to nearly $10,000, has 15% going into retirement (401k & IRA), but her credit score suffered due to her mom using her info for loans and credit.
  • “So whenever I turned 18 and I went to college, I found out that my birth mom had used my information on a house loan, a vehicle loan, and two credit cards.” — Caitlin [01:07]

Impact of Parental Fraud

• Her dad sorted out some issues, but two credit cards in collections (~$1,500) remain and are severely affecting her credit.
  • Medical debt also totals $1,500, with most already paid off from an initial ~$10-12,000.
• Ken and Jade empathize with her situation, noting, “Your mom screwed you over royally. That's messed up.” — Ken Coleman [05:34]

Proving Identity Theft

• The hosts ask if Caitlin has official proof or legal documentation of the fraud, emphasizing the challenge of clearing fraudulent debt without it.
  • “Have you proven this?...Did you get it recorded?” — Ken Coleman [02:38, 02:53]
• Caitlin says she only has a confession from her mom but nothing legal [02:50–02:57].

Ramsey Philosophy: Credit Scores are Overrated

• The crux: Ramsey experts don’t care much about credit scores—because they measure how well you manage debt, and the Ramsey philosophy is anti-debt.
  • “Over here we don't really care about credit scores. The reason...is because credit scores are just a measurement of how you handle and deal with debt. And since we are anti-debt, there's no use for a credit score.” — Jade Warshaw [03:27]
• They stress that focusing on credit scores often leads to more debt, not true financial health.
• “An indeterminable credit score is just as good as a high credit score. It means the same thing.” — Jade Warshaw [04:36]

Manual Underwriting—Life Without a Credit Score

• They explain that you can buy a house or rent an apartment without a credit score via a process called manual underwriting.
  • “If you go out to buy a house...instead of doing normal underwriting, they would do what's called manual underwriting. That's the only difference.” — Ken Coleman [04:49]
• Jade shares her personal experience: “Until I bought my house, I went years without a credit score. And...when it was time to buy the house, we did manual underwriting.” [07:21]

Social Pressure and Debt Industry Influence

• Caitlin notes the pressure from her community: “Where I'm from, obviously, is, like, everybody's always preached like, you can't do anything without a credit score.” [05:53]
• Ken makes a memorable analogy:
  • “What if, like, you were hanging out in a crowd that said, it's totally okay to eat Tide Pods. Would you do it?...You see my point?” [06:04]
• Jade highlights industry interests:
  • “The reason is because that's what's being advertised. Because there's money on the other side of that. Companies want you to take out debt. Therefore, it is in their best interest to create a score around that.” [06:39]

Building Wealth Without Debt

• The hosts encourage Caitlin to use her savings habit for good.
• Suggest paying cash for a car and a house to avoid the credit system altogether.
  • “If you're not gonna finance the car, the credit score doesn't matter. The car I'm driving right now, I bought it from a local dealer, cash money...they never said to me, well, Mr. Coleman, what is your credit score?...There was no credit score conversation.” — Ken Coleman [08:04–08:47]
• Bottom line: Set targets, save intentionally, and sidestep the debt trap.
  • “When you do that, you're setting yourself up to be wealthy for life. Think about it. What would it mean if you invested that car payment?” — Jade Warshaw [09:20]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Family Betrayal:

  • “Your mom screwed you over royally. That's messed up. But I think you have a good head on your shoulders.” — Ken Coleman [05:34]

• On Societal Pressure:

  • “What if, like, you were hanging out in a crowd that said, it's totally okay to eat Tide Pods. Would you do it?...You see my point?” — Ken Coleman [06:04]

• Debunking Credit Hype:

  • “Over here we don't really care about credit scores...a measurement of how you handle and deal with debt...there's no use for a credit score.” — Jade Warshaw [03:27]
  • “Banks want to be able to...do you see what I'm saying? So think through that, because wherever there is a paper trail, that's where you figure out the origins of something.” — Jade Warshaw [07:21]

• On Alternative Paths:

  • “We’re trying to reset your true north...it's like we're pulling you out of the matrix.” — Ken Coleman [08:56]
  • “Set a target, we save up the money, and we go do it. Same thing with a house. What's the right down payment?” — Ken Coleman [09:13]

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Important Timestamps

• 00:15–01:45: Caitlin details her savings, retirement plan, and how her mom trashed her credit.
• 02:11–02:57: Discussing proof of identity theft and options for disputing fraudulent debt.
• 03:27–05:53: Jade and Ken explain why Ramsey ignores credit scores and why chasing high scores is a pitfall.
• 06:04–07:49: Host analogies about social pressure and industry profit motives.
• 08:04–08:49: Ken’s story about paying cash for a car—no credit required.
• 09:13–09:28: The wealth-building power of saving and investing instead of making car payments.

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Summary Flow

The episode delivers a clear takeaway: Even if family drama or fraud damages your credit, you can still take control by rejecting debt, paying cash for big purchases, and focusing on real wealth-building—not your credit score. The hosts confidently challenge the “credit score myth” and give listeners actionable encouragement to live and buy on their own terms.

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Transcript

[A]

Brought to you by the EveryDollar app. Start budgeting for free.

[B]

Today, I am looking for the best way to consolidate my debt and to my credit score so in the future, I can buy a new vehicle in a new house.

[A]

Okay. Now, how familiar with our show are you? Are you new to us?

[B]

Only in the last year and looking at baby steps. I've completed a couple, but out of order.

[A]

Okay, tell us. Give us the update.

[B]

So I already have over a thousand dollars in savings. I'm actually edging towards 10,000. That's just because my dad raised me to always save money and make sure you always have at least six months worth of your bills to be covered.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And then I also have the 15% that I put back monthly into retirement. Okay.

[A]

Is that through a 401k?

[B]

401k and an IRA.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

Anything else?

[B]

That's pretty much it.

[C]

And what about the debt? Because you mentioned consolidating your debt.

[B]

Yes. So whenever I turned 18 and I went to college, I found out that my birth mom had used my information on a house loan, a vehicle loan, and two credit cards.

[C]

Oh, lordy.

[B]

So I have the two credit cards that are on my collections, which is really the main thing that has affected my credit the most. Not the most mortgage, like, no. Because thankfully I found out after having a conversation with my dad that my dad ended up paying for the house and somehow my name was just attached to it for the first 3ish years of my life. Like, I still get unclaimed property tax from the state of Louisiana for that house.

[C]

But it's nowhere on your report anymore?

[B]

No, not at all.

[C]

In the car?

[B]

Not at all.

[C]

Okay, so it's just these credit cards. How much is. How much is it?

[B]

It's right at 1500. And then my total debt is only 3000 because the other 1500 is medical debt. But I've paid off the other 80% of my medical debt just because of my health issues.

[C]

How much was it to begin with

[B]

as far as paying off my debt?

[C]

So it was. It was $8,000 to begin with.

[B]

The medical debt, closer to like 10 to 12.

[A]

Here's what I don't understand. How is it that you're being held liable if it's been proven that your birth mother used your name to fraudulently take out credit card debt?

[B]

That's what I don't understand either.

[A]

Have you talked to the credit card? Well, first of all, have you proven this? Is there some type of legal judgment and ruling that. That it's been acknowledged by somebody in authority that your birth mother did this?

[B]

No, I just got her to admit to it.

[A]

Did you get it and did you get it recorded?

[B]

No, I really don't have much to do with her anymore.

[A]

Sure. Well, gee whiz, I mean, my gosh, I totally understand. All I'm trying to do is to see if there's a way out for you not to have to pay a nickel of the fifteen hundred dollars given that you didn't even.

[B]

And that's how I actually got the house and stuff like that off of my credit, which it still affected my credit from there, but I'm edging up to like 580 compared to the 330 that I started off with.

[C]

Okay, so let's, let's take a time out and talk about that for a minute because I know that you're familiar with Ramsey, but I think there's a key point of this that you're missing and I want to talk about that. So over here we don't really care about credit scores. And the reason that we don't care about credit scores is because credit scores are just a measurement of how you handle and deal with debt. And since we are anti debt, there's no use for a credit score. Because if you think about it, Caitlin, credit scores, they measure how much debt you have, how frequently you use your debt, what percentage of your debt you use, how long your debt's been around, what is the mix of debt stations that you have? Right? It's just a, it's just a, a measurement of debt. And so over here the whole point is, hey, let's get rid of debt because the borrower is slave to the lender. Let's use our income and budget our income to live within our means and pay cash for the things that we want out of life. And so when that happens and you begin to pay off your debts, when you pay off this fifteen hundred dollars medical debt, when you pay off this fifteen hundred dollar credit card or get it expunged and then what's going to happen? And if you decide, hey, I'm just not going to borrow money, your credit score is going to disappear. It takes about six to 12 months for a credit score to completely disappear. If you look it up, it'll either be zero or it'll be indeterminable. That's what takes place. And when that happens, it's not a bad thing. It's actually a very positive thing. But most people will come back and say, well, wait a second, what does that mean, Ken? If I want to get an apartment. What does that mean, Ken? If I want to, you know, buy a mortgage. And so we're here all the time to explain to people. It's actually a wonderful thing when you don't have a credit score, because an indeterminable credit score is just as good as a high credit score. It means the same thing. So if you go out to buy a house, the only thing that's different is the method in which they approve you for the mortgage. Instead of doing normal underwriting, they would do what's called manual underwriting. That's the only difference. And so that's the number one thing that I want you to take away from this conversation, is you don't have to spend your time, effort, and energy chasing a credit score, because all that's going to do is land you in more debt. And I can tell you've got a good head on your shoulders. Your dad taught you how to be a saver. I can tell you're not a person who goes out and takes out a lot of debt. Your mom screwed you over royally. That's messed up. But I think you have a good head on your shoulders, and I think you understand this.

[B]

And that's. Yeah, I agree. This is the only thing from where I'm from, obviously, is, like, everybody's always preached like, you can't do anything without a credit score.

[C]

You're wrong.

[B]

Anything without a credit score.

[A]

Yeah. But what if. What if, like, you were hanging out in a crowd that said, it's like everybody around you said, it's totally okay to eat Tide Pods. Would you do it?

[B]

No.

[A]

You see my point?

[B]

Absolutely not.

[A]

I knew it's an extreme example, but you can't say, well, everybody around me now, here's the deal. We understand that, and that's why Jay just walked you through very meticulously, why we don't think a credit score matters. So now you have to go. Okay. And I understand your reaction. You were kind of like, okay, that's all well and good, but everyone in my life's gonna go, you need to do that. So let's talk about the next step, Jade, which is how she saves up for a car.

[C]

I do want to do that, but I want to take that a step further, because I want you to go home and chew on this. The reason that you're like, ah, well, all my friends are eating the Tide pods. The reason is because that's what's being advertised. Because there's money on the other side of that. Think about that. It makes Sense companies want you to take out debt. Therefore, it is in their best interest to create a score around that. Something that consumers want, something that feels gamified. Right? There's no money on the other. On the other side of a zero credit score, there is no financial institution that benefits from you having a zero credit score. Think about that. Therefore, there's not going to be any commercials about it. Boo. It's not going to be out there. But it doesn't mean it's not real. Ken and I have nothing to gain from this.

[A]

No, not at all.

[C]

So we're sitting here telling you. I. Let me tell you. Until I bought my house, I went years without a credit score. And then when it was time to buy the house, we did manual underwriting. Now I have a mortgage, so I have a credit score. But think through that. And anybody listening, I want you to think about that. Banks are attached to the end of this. Banks want you to borrow money. Banks want to be able to. Do you see what I'm saying? So think through that, because wherever there is a paper trail, that's where you figure out the origins of something.

[A]

Caitlin, would you like to pay cash for a car? If you had the money saved up, how would that feel?

[B]

Amazing. That's actually the way that I was always raised, because my dad never even had a credit score up until I was over the age of 20, and I'm now 27.

[A]

Right. So this is possible. So now the question becomes not how. How do I get my credit score in a place where I can buy a car? Well, if you're not gonna finance the car, the credit score doesn't matter. The car I'm driving right now, I bought it from a local dealer, cash money. And I walked in, literally with cash, and guess what they never asked me for? They never said to me, well, Mr. Coleman, what is your credit score? Because the minute I said I'm paying cash, and I have it in a little briefcase here, and I got an envelope, and I'm literally, what I'm offering you with this car is this amount of money. The guy, first of all, was stunned, and it took him a second to make sure he heard me correctly, and then he went, all right, sir.

[C]

Yes.

[A]

There was no credit score conversation.

[C]

It's fast.

[A]

So, Caitlin, I just. We're trying to reset your

[C]

true north.

[A]

Yeah. You know what I'm thinking? It's like we're pulling you out of the matrix. You know, the matrix says, I got to plug into debt to be able to live. We're saying you don't. And so what do you want? A $12,000 car? $14,000 car? Would an $8,000 car do what it needs to do for you right now? Boom. We set a target, we save up the money, and we go do it. Same thing with a house. What's the right down payment?

[C]

And by the way, when you do that, you're setting yourself up to be wealthy for life. Think about it. What would it mean if you invested that car payment?

[A]

Create your free every dollar budget today. The simplest way to budget for your life.