"Your Family Has Given You Horrific Financial Advice"

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Your Family Has Given You Horrific Financial Advice"

The Ramsey Show Highlights
Host: Ramsey Network
Episode Release Date: June 4, 2025

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Introduction

In the episode titled "Your Family Has Given You Horrific Financial Advice," Lexi reaches out to The Ramsey Show seeking guidance on managing substantial debt and navigating familial financial pressures. Hosted by Dave Ramsey and featuring financial expert George Kamel, the discussion delves deep into the challenges Lexi faces with student loans, credit card debt, and familial expectations.

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Lexi’s Financial Predicament

Lexi opens up about her significant debt burden, attributing much of it to decisions influenced by her parents. At 00:11, she states:

“I've made a lot of really bad financial decisions. For a while, I was blaming my parents and being upset about it, but I feel like I should also take accountability.”

Lexi reveals that she carries approximately $230,000 in debts, comprising both student loans and credit card debt. Despite paying off one credit card—a step inspired by Ramsey's advice—she feels overwhelmed:

“I'm in about $230,000 worth of debts, and that's student loans and then some credit card debt. I did pay off one credit card recently, and I closed the account. I got that advice from your show.” (00:49)

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Origins of the Debt: Parental Influence

The conversation uncovers that Lexi's hefty student loans stem from her father's aspirations for her to pursue higher education. At 02:14, Lexi shares:

“Yes, I got two degrees. I got an undergrad in public health and then I got a master's in health administration.”

Her father encouraged her to obtain these degrees, leading her to take out substantial loans. However, Lexi is now questioning the viability of this path given her current financial strain and career prospects.

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Career Challenges and Income Limitations

Lexi is employed as a care coordinator earning approximately $54,000 annually. George Kamel highlights the discrepancy between her educational investment and earning potential:

“You took out $230,000 for MPH. I mean, what's the highest possible money you could make as a public health administrator?” (02:00)

Lexi responds that the highest she can anticipate earning is around $75,000 to $82,000 per year, which doesn't align well with her debt obligations.

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Impact of Living Expenses and Location

Living in New York City, Lexi faces high living costs, exacerbating her financial woes. At 04:02, she acknowledges:

“Yes, I'm currently renting out a bedroom and paying monthly rent.”

Dave Ramsey advises relocating to a lower cost-of-living area to better manage debt, but Lexi cites her family and health conditions as reasons for staying:

“Because I have a chronic illness. So I originally did want to move out when I started college and go to a different state, but my mother didn't think that was a good idea because she was worried.” (04:21)

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Familial Financial Pressures

Lexi's mother is pressuring her to co-sign for a mortgage due to her strong credit, adding to Lexi's stress:

“She wants me to put my name down for it because I have pretty good credit.” (02:54)

George Kamel criticizes the financial advice Lexi has received from her family, describing it as a "brutal trap":

“I say this with all love to your family. They have given you such horrific financial advice up till now. You've got to stop listening to them, okay?” (08:47)

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Debt Management Strategies Discussed

Consolidation and Snowball Method:

Lexi mentions consolidating her loans after consulting with another financial advisor:

“I consolidated them all together instead of being a bunch of different.” (08:35)

Dave Ramsey emphasizes the importance of prioritizing debts effectively:

“You're gonna have to make the most money with the lowest living expenses possible... You can't afford a mortgage.” (08:00)

Interest Accumulation Concerns:

Lexi shares that her student loan payments were disrupted due to program changes:

“I was paying about like 100 a month on it, but then I had stopped.” (07:05)

Dave warns about the implications of unpaid interest:

“The interest is higher than what you're able to pay.” (07:14)

Multiple Income Streams:

George Kamel strongly advises Lexi to seek additional employment opportunities:

“You're gonna have to go find some more jobs, and you're gonna have to get radical about it, and you're gonna have to work multiple jobs.” (08:47)

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Expert Recommendations and Final Advice

Dave Ramsey concludes by offering Lexi resources to aid her journey out of debt:

“I'm gonna send you a copy of my book Breaking Free from Broke. I hope it gives you some encouragement along what might be a long journey.” (09:25)

George Kamel emphasizes the severity of Lexi's situation, urging her to prioritize debt repayment over familial expectations:

“You're going to have to think very radically and you might tell your parents, I'll be back in five years when these loans are gone.” (06:52)

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Key Takeaways and Insights

1. Parental Influence on Financial Decisions: Lexi's debt was significantly influenced by her parents' aspirations, highlighting the importance of independent financial decision-making.

2. Mismatch Between Education and Earnings: Investing heavily in education does not always guarantee proportional financial returns, especially in fields with limited earning potential.

3. Living Expenses Impact Debt Management: High-cost living areas like New York City can severely hinder debt repayment efforts, emphasizing the need to balance career opportunities with affordability.

4. Importance of Effective Debt Strategies: Consolidation can simplify payments but may not always be the best solution. Prioritizing high-interest debts and seeking additional income are crucial steps.

5. Navigating Familial Financial Pressure: Balancing familial expectations with personal financial health is challenging but essential for long-term stability.

6. Resource Utilization: Leveraging expert advice and resources, such as Dave Ramsey's books, can provide structured pathways out of debt.

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Conclusion

Lexi's story serves as a poignant example of how familial pressures and ill-informed financial decisions can lead to overwhelming debt. Through the compassionate yet candid advice of Dave Ramsey and George Kamel, listeners are reminded of the importance of taking accountability, prioritizing debt repayment, and making strategic financial choices to reclaim financial freedom.

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Notable Quotes:

• Lexi at 00:11: “I've made a lot of really bad financial decisions. For a while, I was blaming my parents and being upset about it, but I feel like I should also take accountability.”

• George Kamel at 02:14: “It's such a brutal trap where parents are like, no, no, no, no, no. My kid's gonna go to this fancy school, make me look good, and then they're gonna carry it.”

• Dave Ramsey at 08:00: “You’re gonna have to make the most money with the lowest living expenses possible, because otherwise... it would take you 20 years to pay off this debt.”

• George Kamel at 08:47: “You're gonna have to go find some more jobs, and you're gonna have to get radical about it, and you're gonna have to work multiple jobs.”

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This episode underscores the critical need for informed financial planning and the courage to make tough decisions for long-term well-being.

Transcript

[Dave Ramsey]

Brought to you by why refi. Refinance your defaulted private student loans? [e-mail] Ramsey I've come to realization that.

[Lexi]

I've made a lot of really bad financial decisions. For a while, I was blaming my parents and being upset about it, but I feel like I should also take accountability.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yay. It's a big day.

[George Kamel]

Yeah. Welcome. Welcome to adulthood. That's awesome. We're proud of you.

[Lexi]

Yes. So I just. I wanted to get some advice because I'm in a lot of debt, and I've been working on paying them off, but I still feel like I'm kind of drowning. And my mom's currently asking me to help buy a house. And I don't know. Like, that's a hard no, but I just.

[George Kamel]

Yeah. I don't even know your financial situation, and. Hard no. Yeah. How bad is it? How much do you owe?

[Lexi]

So I'm in about $230,000 worth of debts, and that's student loans and then some credit card debt. I did pay off one credit card recently, and I closed the account. I got that advice from your show. Now I'm just working on finishing paying off the other one.

[George Kamel]

$230,000 in student loans? Like, what are you, a doctor?

[Lexi]

No, but that is what my dad wanted me to become, so he talked me into taking out the loans and staying in school.

[Dave Ramsey]

But what was the degree? And did you finish?

[Lexi]

Yes, I got two degrees. I got an undergrad in public health and then I got a master's in health administration.

[George Kamel]

Oh, gee.

[Dave Ramsey]

And are you working in that field?

[Lexi]

I'm currently working as a care coordinator. I make about 54k a year.

[George Kamel]

Yeah. Dude, you took out $230,000 for mph. I mean, what's the highest possible money you could make as a public health administrator?

[Lexi]

Probably like around 75, 82 a year.

[George Kamel]

Gosh.

[Dave Ramsey]

Oh, boy.

[George Kamel]

Yeah. Are these private schools?

[Lexi]

Yeah. Yeah, but the student loans are with, like, the government.

[George Kamel]

No, I know they are, but this is. This is a. Are you a first gen college student?

[Lexi]

Yes.

[George Kamel]

Yeah. So there's the man. It's such a brutal trap where parents are like, no, no, no, no, no. My kid's gonna go to this fancy school, make me look good, and then they're gonna. Yeah, they're gonna be the. They're gonna carry it.

[Lexi]

My dad said. Because I had realized that freshman year, and I was saying, I don't know if that's a good idea.

[George Kamel]

Yeah.

[Lexi]

Seem so excited about it that I got into a really, like, nice school.

[Dave Ramsey]

And all the loans are in.

[Lexi]

Half of it is in my name and the other half is in my.

[Dave Ramsey]

Mom'S name plus loan or what? Like is she liable or.

[Lexi]

Yes, the parent plus loan.

[George Kamel]

Yeah, but she's hitting you up for money to buy a house and so she has no money.

[Lexi]

She wants me to put my name down for it because I have pretty good credit.

[George Kamel]

No, hey, listen, they've. I say this with all love to your family. They have given you such horrific financial advice up till now. You've got to stop listening to them, okay? Like you, you've carried your dream as far as you can carry it because now this is your nightmare. If you told me you owed 230 grand and you're, you were finishing up med school, you're finishing up nurse practitioner school, then I would be sad for you. But man, there's a path. This is going to be really tough because even tapping, I mean, the highest possible paying job you could get as a public health official with a MPH master's in public health. Yeah, it's 75 or 85%.

[Lexi]

So I have a master's in health administration. So I'm looking to go into like administration and hospital management.

[George Kamel]

Yeah. But then the federal government just announced they're, they're hacking all the NIH jobs and that's going to trickle down through administrative positions at hospitals.

[Lexi]

Okay.

[George Kamel]

Yeah.

[Dave Ramsey]

I mean, you're living in New York City.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Dave Ramsey]

How are you surviving? Making 50 grand with 230 in loans in New York City?

[Lexi]

Well, I'm currently renting out a bedroom and paying monthly rent.

[Dave Ramsey]

I think you need to move to a lower cost of living area. What's keeping you in New York City?

[Lexi]

My family.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah, but what are they doing? I mean, just to see them and hang out with them.

[Lexi]

Because I have a chronic illness. So I originally did want to move out when I started college and go to a different state, but my mother didn't think that was a good idea because she was worried.

[Dave Ramsey]

So are they helping take care of you? Are you working full time?

[Lexi]

No, I'm still, I'm taking care of myself pretty well now. I take care of my own stuff, all of my medical stuff. I make my own appointments, go to them.

[Dave Ramsey]

Okay.

[Lexi]

Independent knowledge.

[Dave Ramsey]

As if that's the case, then I would move. I'd find a job. If you can make 54k in Idaho, you're going to have a better shot at paying off these student loans in your lifetime. But New York City is not the place.

[George Kamel]

Here's the thing. You have run up against A hard truth. And this hard truth is math. And I know you want to honor your mom and dad by doing whatever they say and carry their dreams forward. I get that. And I know that's a hard thing that George and I asking you to do. And I know you want to stay in New York City and I know that you want to make sure that you don't make your mom stressed out with her worrying and all this stuff. You have a math problem, a very serious math problem. And that is you owe the United States government $230,000 and you make 50 a year. It's just a math problem and it's catastrophic. It's really tough.

[Lexi]

Yeah.

[George Kamel]

And so you're going to have to get serious about where can I live, where my cost of living is as low as humanly possible and what job can I get? Can I find a rural hospital that will pay me a hundred grand to be an administrator at a small hospital so that I can get to paying this stuff off? I mean, you're going to have to think very radically and you might tell your parents, I'll be back in five years when these loans are gone. And God help you if you sign for a, if you sign for a mortgage or something like that. I mean, you just, you can't, you can't afford that. You know what I mean? Have you started having to make payments yet.

[Lexi]

For the student loan? Uh huh, yes, I started making payments, but I was on the SAFE program. But seems like they're changing that.

[George Kamel]

They're changing every program. And you don't know this, but we've been telling people for years, don't count on the federal government coming to your rescue on these loans because you never know what an administration is going to do. And then here we go, we got a new administration that's cutting everything. And so yeah, man, geez, I'm sorry.

[Dave Ramsey]

What is your take home pay every month?

[Lexi]

About 2,800 to $3,000.

[Dave Ramsey]

And what's your student loan payment every month?

[Lexi]

I was paying about like 100amonth on it, but then I had stopped.

[Dave Ramsey]

You know what that's going to do, right? Your 230 grand is going to turn.

[George Kamel]

Into 300 grand because the interest still keeps cooking.

[Dave Ramsey]

The interest is higher than what you're able to pay.

[Lexi]

They had, they put it, I forgot the term they had put it on, like something they said, like forbearance, you have to pay at the moment because I guess they were figuring out everything as things were changing.

[Dave Ramsey]

Well, you got to find out what's actually going on there because the interest can still be growing, even though, hey, you don't need to pay. Don't worry about it. And the interest keeps growing while you sit there. And so that's the math for you to solve is I need to make the most money with the lowest living expenses possible, because otherwise, even if you're able to pay a thousand bucks a month toward your debt, which, I don't know, you could even do, it would take you 20 years to pay off this debt, and that's if the balance didn't grow by a cent.

[Lexi]

Okay.

[Dave Ramsey]

And so you're gonna have to debt snowball this thing. But I don't want it to take 20 years. I think Lexi has a lot of life to live.

[Lexi]

I've been doing with the credit cards. I've paid paid one off already.

[Dave Ramsey]

How many more do you have?

[Lexi]

I just have one credit less, and there's 1,400.

[Dave Ramsey]

Okay. And then what's your next smallest balance? If you split up all the loans.

[Lexi]

No. That said, and then the next thing I would have to tackle is just paying off the student loans. That's the only credit card I have left. I don't have any.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah. What's the. What's the smallest loan balance you have out of all the loans? I'm guessing they're split up amongst many loans.

[Lexi]

Oh, no. I consolidated them.

[Dave Ramsey]

Oh, no. Oh, okay.

[Lexi]

Because I had talked with another financial advisor.

[Dave Ramsey]

I think you need to stop talking to people.

[George Kamel]

Stop talking to people. Stop talking to people.

[Lexi]

And he had said it would be best to consolidate it all together instead of being a bunch of different.

[George Kamel]

Yeah, you got bad advice. I'm sorry. When two knuckleheads on a podcast that you don't even know are the only ones speaking truth to you. I'm sorry. I hate this for you. You're gonna have to go find some more jobs, and you're gonna have to get radical about it, and you're gonna have to work multiple jobs. And there's. I mean, there's only one way to do this. You can't cut anything from your life. You're gonna have to just make more money.

[Dave Ramsey]

And if the debt's not in your name, I would not be worried about it right now. If it's in mom's name, worry about that later. Focus on the ones that are in your name.

[George Kamel]

Consolidated it all together.

[Dave Ramsey]

It sounds like that could have happened. Hang on the line, Lexi. I'm gonna send you a copy of my book Breaking Free from Broke. I hope it gives you some encouragement along what might be a long journey. Why Refi Refinances Delinquent private student loans for struggling borrowers. Learn more at Y r e f y.com Ramsey.