My Wife Doesn't Want Me To Spend $6,000 A Year On A Sailboat

Summary

The Ramsey Show Highlights

Episode: My Wife Doesn't Want Me To Spend $6,000 A Year On A Sailboat
Date: September 20, 2025
Host: Dave Ramsey
Guests: Jim and Sarah from Michigan

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Overview

This lively and humorous episode centers on Jim and Sarah, a married couple of 40 years, who call in to navigate a disagreement: Jim wants to keep spending $6,000 per year maintaining a sailboat that was given to him, while Sarah questions both the financial logic and the accumulation of “junk” boats. With a net worth of $3.7 million, their debate opens up broader questions about spending, enjoying money, and marital compromise in retirement.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Background: The “Free” Sailboats

• Jim received a 30-foot sailboat for free from a neighbor—“Or I should say Jesus gave it to me free, to be more accurate.” (Jim, 00:46)
• Sarah clarifies they have three free sailboats. (Sarah, 00:56)
• The couple has managed their money well over the years, amassing a net worth of $3.7 million.

Sailboat Value vs. Maintenance Costs

• The three sailboats together are worth $7,000; the main 30-foot one is worth roughly $5,000 (Sarah, 01:50; Jim, 01:57).
• Dave challenges the logic of “spending $6,000 a year to keep a $5,000 thing alive.” (Dave, 02:19)
• Jim contends this amount is typical for marina, launch, and maintenance fees (Jim, 03:06).

Discrepancies & Frustrations

• Sarah is frustrated with the ongoing money spent: “So far, he’s spent $30,000. 37 do and 86 cents on a boat that people give to you.” (Sarah, 04:25)
• Disagreement on boat values and inconsistent tracking of exactly how many boats they have leads to humorous confusion (Sarah and Jim, 05:51–06:10).

Marital Dynamics & Compromises

• Sarah wishes for a remodeled kitchen rather than more boat expenses: “To be honest with you, I’d actually like a kitchen sink.” (Sarah, 06:19)
• Dave jokes, “Jim, Remodel the whole freaking kitchen as your trade out.” (Dave, 06:24)
• Dave ultimately advises giving each other grace—and permission to enjoy some of their financial security: “You need to back up about three notches...start enjoying some of this money.” (Dave, 07:00)
• Both spouses have different “fun” expenditures, and Dave encourages them to allow each other joyful spending within their means.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Free Boats:
  • “My neighbor gave it to me. Or I should say Jesus gave it to me free, to be more accurate.” (Jim, 00:46)
  • “We have three sailboats given to us for free. Three.” (Sarah, 00:56)
• On Sailboat Expenses:
  • “You want to spend $6,000 a year to keep a $5,000 thing alive. I’m confused.” (Dave, 02:19)
  • “Sarah’s not going to be happy with a sailboat. So then the question is, Sarah, if you take the value of the sailboat and what you spend on it and you burn it in the middle of the floor, does it change your life when you have $3.7 million?” (Dave, 05:02)
• On Enjoying Wealth:
  • “Being tight and smart is what got you here, but now you need to enjoy some of it.” (Dave, 07:00)
  • “Don’t major in minors. It’s stealing your peace.” (Dave, 07:30)
• On Marriage Compromise:
  • “There’s stuff that my wife buys that I do not understand, but she gets joy from it… And what I do get joy from is her getting joy.” (Dave, 08:14)
  • “Y’all are great. That was so fun.” (Dave, 09:05)

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Important Segments & Timestamps

• [00:19] – Jim introduces the sailboat scenario and their financial background.
• [00:53] – The couple reveals they’ve received three free sailboats.
• [01:22] – Net worth revealed: $3.7 million.
• [01:50–02:19] – Discussion of boat values versus maintenance spending.
• [04:25] – Sarah voices concern about $30,000 spent on the boats.
• [06:19] – Sarah expresses her wish for a new kitchen sink instead of spending on boats.
• [07:00] – Dave encourages the couple to “enjoy some of this money.”
• [08:14] – Dave offers a lesson on joy and generosity in marriage.
• [09:08] – Final encouragement: “Give each other some grace and love and to the tune of about $30,000 each and just go blow some money on your 41 year marriage.”

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Tone & Takeaways

The episode is lighthearted and playful, with Dave Ramsey mixing practical wisdom, gentle teasing, and encouragement. The main takeaway is that, for those who have been disciplined savers and are now financially secure, it’s important to find a balance between frugality and enjoying the fruits of their labor—especially when it comes to marital happiness and compromise on “fun money” spending.

Final Thought:
“Create your free EveryDollar budget today. The simplest way to budget for your life.” (Dave, 09:08)

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Transcript

[Dave Ramsey]

Brought to you by the EveryDollar app. Start budgeting for free today. Jim and Sarah are in Michigan. Hi guys. How are you?

[Jim]

Pretty well, Mr. Ramsey. Thank you for taking our call. We're anxious to talk to you, sir.

[Dave Ramsey]

Our Honor. How can we help?

[Jim]

Well, we've been married for 40 years and we've gone through a lot of finances successfully. We've managed to save a substantial lot of money. And about three years ago I acquired a 30 foot sailboat and it cost roughly $6,000 a year to own and operate.

[Dave Ramsey]

What did you pay for the 30 foot sailboat?

[Jim]

Well, my neighbor gave it to me. Or I should say Jesus gave it to me free, to be more accurate.

[Dave Ramsey]

He gave you a 30 foot sailboat free?

[Sarah]

Jesus did?

Yes. Three. We have three sailboats given to us for free. Three.

[Dave Ramsey]

Okay, you currently own only one.

[Sarah]

No, we own three.

[Dave Ramsey]

You currently own three sailboats.

[Sarah]

Jesus.

[Dave Ramsey]

Three free sailboats. And you said, you said you'd piled up a substantial. Hey, Jim, you said you'd piled up a substantial amount of money. What's your all's net worth?

[Sarah]

Not that much.

[Jim]

About 3.7 million.

[Sarah]

Sarah. Not that much. She said not that much. That's pretty good, Sarah.

Well, I listen to you every day for two hours and we could do better, you know.

[Dave Ramsey]

Okay, so what are the three sailboats worth?

[Sarah]

The cars all together. The cars and the sailboats.

[Dave Ramsey]

Now I asked what the sailboats are worth.

[Sarah]

The sailboats altogether are worth $7,000. And we have a camper worth $500.

[Dave Ramsey]

Okay, so a 30 foot sailboat is worth 2,000 of the seven or 3,000 of the seven. Jim, does that sound right to you? 5,000. Okay, so you got two junkers and one good one. Okay, you have a $5,000 sailboat, but you want to spend $6,000 a year to keep a $5,000 thing alive. I'm confused.

[Sarah]

I am too.

[Dave Ramsey]

Now. Jim. Jim, we already figured out what you want to do, Sarah. Jim, why do you want to spend 6,000 to keep something that's 5,000 alive?

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[Dave Ramsey]

Jim, why do you want to spend 6,000 to keep something that's 5,000 alive?

[Jim]

Well, that's just normal costs of marinas.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah.

[Jim]

Marina swift. And then launching and recovery in the spring and fall.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah.

[Jim]

And, you know, minor incidental.

[Dave Ramsey]

It's not that much. But I kind of expected that when you said you were spending 6,000 on it that it'd be worth 30,000 or something.

[Jim]

Well, you know, it's worth what you can get on and on a good day, but, you know, it could easily be worth.

[Sarah]

No, no. $5,000. 5,000.

[Dave Ramsey]

And we met. There's a bit of a discrepancy here, boys and girls. Yes, y' all are fun.

[Jim]

Well, you know, with old sailboats, it's what you can get for it. On it.

[Dave Ramsey]

No, really, Jim. The stinking thing has a market value. Seriously, it's. The range of value is not between 5 and 30. It's one or the other.

[Sarah]

You know that thousand dollars?

[Dave Ramsey]

Where did you get that number? Sarah, you sound so sure.

[Sarah]

The insurance.

[Jim]

What?

[Sarah]

The insurance.

[Dave Ramsey]

Insurance does not determine value.

[Sarah]

Okay, then I'm wrong. Okay, it is between 5 and $12,000. Possibly.

[Dave Ramsey]

But if you put a sign on it, you might sell it for 12,000.

[Sarah]

No, you can't sell it. It's so bad. People can't give them away.

[Dave Ramsey]

Well, they did to you.

[Sarah]

That's the problem.

[Jim]

Yes, sir.

[Sarah]

And so far, he spent $30,000. 37 do and 86 cents on a boat that people give to you. 30. Over $30,000 on a.

[Dave Ramsey]

You've had it five years.

[Jim]

About three. This is my third summer with it.

[Sarah]

And he spent $30,000 and 37.

Yeah, but we're talking like five. I don't know.

[Dave Ramsey]

Okay.

[Sarah]

Bucks a month.

[Dave Ramsey]

There's two issues here, okay?

[Jim]

I don't know.

[Dave Ramsey]

Jim, we're not gonna make Sarah happy. Okay? Sarah's not going to be happy with a sailboat.

[Sarah]

Sarah's not happy with 1.7. She's.

[Dave Ramsey]

We know that. We know that Sarah's not going to be happy with a sailboat. So then the question is, Sarah, if you take the value of the sailboat and what you spend on it and you burn it in the middle of the floor, does it change your life when you have $3.7 million if you take $6,000 and. And throw it out the window as you drive along the interstate? No, it does not change your life. So this is not a deal breaker. You're not gonna be Poor on food stamps because of Jim's sailboat. Sarah, you're fine. You can afford to do this. It's not a big deal. But, Jim, you probably do need to think about. Are you still sitting on the other two boats as well?

[Jim]

Yes, I. I can only count one other sailboat. Except for a model sailboat in the living room.

[Sarah]

No, no, no. We have another boat. Another boat?

[Jim]

Oh, another boat, but not a sailboat.

[Sarah]

Well, yes, we have another boat.

[Jim]

Oh, you mean the rowboat?

[Sarah]

Yeah.

[Jim]

Oh, yes, sir. We have a 12 foot aluminum boat. Yeah, that's true.

[Dave Ramsey]

Okay.

[Sarah]

And a camper.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah. Okay. And. All right. And so other than mess with gym, Sarah, what are your hobbies?

[Sarah]

Well, actually, to be honest with you, I'd actually like a kitchen sink.

[Dave Ramsey]

Oh, hey, Jim, it's going to cost you a kitchen sink. Jim, Remodel the whole freaking kitchen as your trade out.

[Jim]

Yeah.

[Dave Ramsey]

All right. You two cheapskates are made for each other. Y' all are fun. I love y'. All. You're great. Listen, $3.7 million, if it's growing at 10%, is growing at a rate of $370,000 a year. And we're having a discussion here about an aluminum 14 foot rowboat and a kitchen sink, y'.

[Jim]

All.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah, you need to back up about three notches, pan your camera back and start enjoying some of this money. Now, being tight and smart is what got you here, but now you need to enjoy some of it. And If Sarah, if $6,000 makes Jim happy, it's $6,000. You can afford it. Okay. And Jim, if getting rid of the aluminum rowboat and the camper and the odd sailboat makes her happy, get rid of them and remodel her kitchen, too. You guys can afford to do all of that, but don't major in miners. It's stealing your piece.

[Jim]

Okay, yeah, well, when she says remodel, we have a three year old home and a triple. Okay, All I'm saying is buy her a sink. All I'm saying is she wants me to tear that out and go down and get her a commercial sink like you find in the good McDonald's.

[Dave Ramsey]

And I don't want you to do it. I want you to pay somebody to do it.

[Sarah]

Well, they're high grade steel. They're high grade steel?

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah, like, kind of like an aluminum boat. It's high grade.

[Sarah]

Use the aluminum from the aluminum boat, make you a sink. We're going to recycle two birds with one stone.

[Dave Ramsey]

Hey, guys. Well, listen, you're stepping over dollars. You're stepping over dollars and pick up nickels and it's stealing your fun. It's stealing your fun. So there's stuff that my wife buys that I do not understand, but she gets joy from it. And what I do. What I do get joy from is her getting joy. There's stuff that I buy that she has. Absolutely. She thinks it's stupid when I buy it, but she doesn't hassle me about it because we have the money and I get joy from it, and she wants to see me get joy. So let's major in. You guys giving each other some joy, starting going forward here. Okay?

[Sarah]

You knew. It's a funny call me. We've been married 40 years and she's like, 41. 41.

[Dave Ramsey]

We ain't got any money. We're broke. It's only 3.7 million.

[Sarah]

We didn't do good. We didn't do good. They were funny.

[Dave Ramsey]

Y' all are great. That was so fun.

[Sarah]

Oh, my gosh.

[Dave Ramsey]

Hey, give each other some grace and love and to the tune of about 30,000 bucks each and just go blow some money on your 41 year marriage. What a wonderful thing to do. It won't. You won't even know it happened. You'll still have 3.7 million. Create your free every dollar budget today. The simplest way to budget for your life.