Small Financial Wins Lead To Big Financial Impact

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Ramsey Show – "Small Financial Wins Lead To Big Financial Impact"

Date: March 27, 2026
Hosts: Rachel Cruze & Dr. John Delony (Ramsey Network)
Episode Theme:
This episode focuses on how small, intentional financial decisions and changes in mindset can lead to significant long-term wealth and well-being. The hosts take live calls from listeners facing a range of financial and life dilemmas, offering advice rooted in practical budgeting, personal responsibility, and open communication—emphasizing that anyone can change their trajectory, regardless of past mistakes.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Marriage, Money, and Transparency

• Caller Sue from Houston: Concerned about her husband possibly being financially abusive due to secret bank accounts and ongoing accusations.
• Key Insights:
  • Dr. Delony notes, “Often, the complaint that you're making about your spouse is the thing that you're doing.” (01:36)
  • The real problem is disengagement and lack of partnership, not just the money. Dr. Delony strongly advises marriage therapy, highlighting mental health issues as an underlying factor.
  • Rachel Cruze and Dr. Delony stress the need for separate business and personal finances for clarity.
• Quote:

  “You just have an overbearing CEO that swoops in every once in a while and yells about stuff and threatens and takes some of the money out of the account and then leaves again.” (04:30 – Dr. John Delony)

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2. Avoiding Student Loans and Creative Problem-Solving

• Caller Valerie from NYC: Wants to attend a licensed nursing program but can’t get a loan due to accreditation issues.
• Advice:
  • Rachel and John advise against taking loans, urging her instead to pursue creative hustles, budgeting, and possibly installment payments for tuition.
  • Challenge: Save $8,000 in five months through side gigs and boundary setting in her relationship.
• Quote:

  “Your choice to cover for his expenses is a choice to delay going to nursing school.” (13:31 – Dr. John Delony)

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3. Discretionary Spending: When Is It Okay?

• Caller Dan from Charlotte: 24, wants to buy a $7,000 Miata as a second car while already driving a reliable Corolla.
• Framework Provided:
  • If there’s no debt, healthy savings, and the total value of “toys” is less than half annual salary, then go for it.
  • Discussion about the hidden costs of ownership beyond purchase price.
• Quote:

  “Anything with motors and wheels, you don’t want the value to be more than half your annual income.” (17:57 – Rachel Cruze)

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4. Rebuilding Trust in Marriage After Financial Infidelity

• Caller Mike from Rapid City: Paid off his wife’s secret debt years ago, now wants to combine finances and focus on college funds for daughters.
• Dr. Delony’s Advice:
  • Address lingering distrust and old wounds directly—intimacy requires facing realities, not avoidance.
  • Communication strategy: “Here’s the story I’m making up… here’s how that makes me feel… here’s what I’d like to happen.” (28:03)
  • Rachel notes repairing this area will strengthen their overall marriage.
• Notable Quote:

  “The real issue is… you want to save for your daughter’s college and feel you have an obligation in your chest, and you watch your wife burn the thing down.” (27:07 – Dr. John Delony)

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5. Making Memories vs. Rigid Debt Repayment

• Caller Victoria from Philadelphia: In “baby step 2,” asks if it’s okay to spend on making memories with her mother, who is terminally ill.
• Guidance:
  • Balancing quality time and guilt over delaying debt payoff.
  • Dr. Delony encourages non-monetary ways to create memories, and deeper processing of underlying grief.
• Memorable Moment:

  “The grief is less on the thing and more on, ‘Oh, this relationship… is coming to an end.’ …Grief demands a witness.” (36:35, 37:12 – Dr. John Delony)

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6. Home Repairs vs. Starting a Family & Investing

• Caller Ethan from LA: Weighs fixing house problems (mold, leaks) before starting a family or resuming investments.
• Advice:
  • Stick to baby steps: invest 15% for retirement, then cash flow repairs.
  • Don’t postpone big life milestones for “perfect” conditions.

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7. Landlord & Rental Property Stress

• Caller Sam from Hartford: Over-leveraged on a 3-family home with vacant, gutted units.
• Advice:
  • Don’t take out more debt (no HELOC).
  • Options: Either cash-flow renovations one at a time or sell the property, considering high potential equity.
• Quote:

  “At some point, you’ve got to pay the piper. Deal in reality, not in the next idea.” (45:20 – Dr. John Delony)

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8. Moving for Love vs. Financial Stability

• Caller Chris from Louisville: Wants to move closer to a new girlfriend, despite significant debt and no job lined up.
• Advice:
  • Don’t move for a relationship unless there’s clear financial stability and a job transition plan.
  • “Don’t let the love cloud good judgment.” (57:35 – Rachel Cruze)

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9. Debt Settlement with Collection Agencies

• Caller Corey from Nashville: Wants to settle a collections debt but can't get a payoff letter.
• Critical Steps:
  • Never pay collections without written agreement.
  • Never give electronic account access.
• Quote:

  “You have to get it in writing. We've heard horror stories of people not doing this and then they change the deal on ya.” (62:18 – Rachel Cruze)

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10. From Windfall to Car Catastrophe

• Caller Colin from Orlando: Blew a $40k inheritance on a truck, is now broke and about to be homeless.
• Ramsey Plan:
  • Sell the expensive vehicle, use proceeds and remaining assets to get out of the high payment, and get basic transport.
  • Focus on building trust with himself through discipline.
• Quote:

  “I want to reestablish trust again with Colin. Colin’s a guy that does the next right thing.” (68:49 – Dr. John Delony)

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11. Stay-at-Home Mom’s Entrepreneurship in Debt

• Caller Logan from Columbus, OH: Wife wants to start embroidery business (needs $1,000 start-up) while they’re deep in debt.
• Advice:
  • Don’t take on new spending or investments for unproven ventures while in “baby step 2.”
  • Consider side hustles with minimal capital outlay.

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12. Rent vs. Owning for Retirees

• Caller Karen from St. Louis: 58, recently divorced, wondering if buying a home makes sense.
• Advice:
  • Yes, due to the rising cost of rent and the security of ownership.
  • “14 years at current savings equals nearly a million in retirement.” (82:10, summarized)
  • Don’t depend on future inheritance for stability—make plans independent of it.

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13. Family Boundaries: The 'Giving Tree' Dilemma

• Caller Dan in Atlanta: Parents keep financially supporting adult brother, even after becoming wealthy—caller is frustrated.
• Advice:
  • It’s ultimately the parents’ choice; you can only express your concerns, then let it go for your own peace.
• Quotes:

  “You find yourself in a position where you can't change the outcome… I would let it go.” (89:17, 90:28 – Dr. John Delony)
  “After thousands of dollars in therapy… you can't change people.” (92:22 – Rachel Cruze)

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14. Should You Outsource Housework?

• Question: At what point is it okay to hire a house cleaner?
• Rule of Thumb:
  • After completing baby step 3 (fully funded emergency fund), and only if it fits the budget.
  • Be open to redefining household roles as life changes.
• Insights:

  “Buying back time is actually a way to find joy with your money.” (98:10 – Rachel Cruze referencing Arthur Brooks’ work)

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15. When Wealth Feels Awkward: Living with $14M

• Caller Lindsay from San Diego: Struggles with guilt over spending and desire to treat friends.
• Hosts’ Encouragement:
  • Use wealth to create memories and buy experiences—don’t be afraid to share with friends.
• Quote:

  “Would you rather… have had a bunch of memories with your friends… or an account on your computer with big numbers in it?” (102:50 – Dr. John Delony)

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16. Sudden Inheritance & Crushing Debt

• Caller Alyssa from Toronto: Received $200k inheritance; has $90k in vehicle debt, $45k back taxes, $15k credit card debt.
• Challenge:
  • Not just to wipe out debt, but to change the behaviors that led to it.
  • Sell the expensive cars; don’t let “personality” or lifestyle justify bad financial decisions.
• Quote:

  “I want this money you received after something horrific to be a good legacy, but you guys make bad decisions with money and identity.” (113:38 – Rachel Cruze)

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17. Career Change, College Sports, and Parental Pressure

• Caller Kay from Dallas: Son received offer to play college sports locally (full ride), but wants to attend a different school and play club instead.
• Hosts’ Logic:
  • Don’t pressure kids into competitive sports for the financial benefit if their heart isn’t in it.
  • There’s always another way to pay for school. Be vulnerable about your family’s financial journey to encourage wise choices in your kids.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “You continuing to try to bang your head up against that situation is only going to give you a bruise.” (08:09 – Dr. John Delony)
• “Winning with money is about doing the boring stuff consistently.” (09:38 – George [promo], relevant in episode’s theme)
• “Debt is not a math problem, it’s a behavior problem.” (09:41 – George [promo])
• Dr. Delony shares a personal story about walking away from a full-ride scholarship, which led to meeting his wife and changing his life path. (120:06)
• Rachel to Lindsay, $14M caller: “Go enjoy life, Lindsay.” (103:55)

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Important Timestamps

• 01:36: Financial infidelity and mental health in marriage
• 13:31: Budgeting priorities while supporting a partner
• 17:57: Discretionary purchases and the “half income rule”
• 28:03: Communication for rebuilding trust
• 36:35 & 37:12: Grief and spending on terminally ill loved ones
• 45:20: Real estate reality checks for DIY landlords
• 57:35: Love vs. financial stability in big moves
• 62:18: Debt settlement cautions
• 68:49: Reestablishing self-trust after financial mistakes
• 82:10, 82:45: Retirement projections & homeownership for older callers
• 89:17, 90:28: Letting go with family financial boundaries
• 98:10: Buying back time for happiness
• 102:50: Wealth, memories, & generosity with friends
• 113:38: Using inheritance wisely and breaking bad patterns
• 120:06: Personal college sports and long-term outcomes

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Episode Tone:

Candid, supportive, practical, often humorous, and occasionally tough-love—reflecting real-life struggle alongside encouragement to take control and believe change is possible.

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Closing Thought:

Throughout this episode, Rachel Cruze and Dr. John Delony emphasize that big financial wins are almost always the result of small, repeated actions—budgeting, self-control, communication, and willingness to face uncomfortable truths. Above all, they stress that the power to change is never lost, no matter how many "stupid mistakes" you’ve made, and that cultivating both financial discipline and relational transparency leads to lasting peace and impact.

Transcript

[Dave Ramsey]

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

[Rachel Cruze]

Normal is broke and common sense is weird. So we're here to help you transform your life. From the Ramsey Network in the Fair Winds Credit Union studio. This is the Ramsey show and I am Rachel Cruz hosting this hour with Dr. John Deloney. And it's open line, so give us a call at 882-55225. We're talking about your life and your money. First up is sue in Houston, Texas. Hi, Sue. Welcome to the show. Hello. Hi. How can we help today?

[Caller]

I was trying to determine if my husband is being financially abusive.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, so what's going on?

[Caller]

He has two separate bank accounts on top of a joint bank account that we have. Only a portion of his check goes into bank account. All of my money goes into the joint bank account. He is constantly upset, making accusations that I'm spending thousands more than we should be spending. But he doesn't really know what our bills are because I'm the one who logs in and pays the bills. And so he just tells me that I'm hiding things from him and he thinks I have the separate bank accounts when I do not. And I just paranoid very well.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Often the, the complaint that you're making about your spouse is the thing that you're doing. So spouses that are like, are you cheating on me? I know you're cheating on me often have something going on on the side.

[Caller]

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So his paranoia about what are you doing with our money or with my money may be rooted in him doing what he's doing with his money. I, I, I don't know if calling this financial abuse is instructive here. I think what's instructive here is you feel out to lunch and you're getting accused to about things that you're not doing, and you have a partner who's totally disengaged from you and the household finances and yet swoops in and tries to quarterback everything. And I would deal with that directly or the ramifications of he won't deal with it directly.

[Caller]

Right?

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. What does he say when you ask, are you, do you have access to his other two accounts? Are you able to just see it? You know, you may not have a card, but can you log in and see what he's doing?

[Caller]

No, I do not have any access. I do not know what money goes into the accounts. I know for a fact a portion of his check goes directly into one.

[Rachel Cruze]

Why does he have it? What does he say? He sets it up.

[Caller]

That way why he's never mentioned other than hinting that he just wants to make sure that he can take care of himself if anything were to happen. One time he has messaged me and blatantly said that he transfers money out of the account to his other account to make sure that if he ever needed to get an attorney, he would be taken care of.

[Rachel Cruze]

Like, out of the blue. He, like, text you that or you guys were in a fight? I don't understand. I just understand where he's coming from. Has he always been like this?

[Caller]

Yes. He goes, like, through this regularly. Probably once every other month. He has questions about it. It usually doesn't last very long, but this time we're going into the third week of continuing to not see eye to eye with the finances. It's hard to see eye to eye when I can't see part of the finances and what he's spending money on. I don't care that he has separate bank accounts. I don't care that he spends money out of those account. I don't even care what he spends the money on because we are able to take care of things.

[Dr. John Deloney]

You should care, and I can't make you care. So, like. And even saying should isn't. Isn't a nice thing to say. What I would tell. Give me this answer. Where else are y' all not together? Where else does he do whatever he just gets good and ready to do, leaving you to take care of the kids, the house, the whatever.

[Caller]

Yeah, I. We don't see eye to eye on almost everything, really.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So it. I'm wondering if the money is a proxy war here to avoid dealing with the reality that y'.

[Caller]

All.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Y' all aren't even good co managers of your house. You're the manager of the house. You just have an overbearing CEO that swoops in every once in a while and yells about stuff and threatens and takes some of the money out of the account and then leaves again. And so this won't be solved by quote, unquote, getting on the same page with your money. You only need to go see a marriage therapist, like, asap, because. Because I think you're. The marriage y' all had is over. And you only decide whether you all want to build a new one together. And I can almost guarantee you, because of the way he's talking and treating you and your household finances, he is. He is either planning an out or he is dealing with some psychiatric issues that make him feel like there's an out happening. And. But you all need to get down to the reality here, the money is a symptom of a really a much bigger issue in your marriage. And you. And you know that, right? I'm not telling some. You don't know. You feel that every day, right?

[Caller]

Correct. Yes. I, I pretty much knew the answer to my question already, but it was more of one of those confirmation. Hearing it from someone else.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. Sue, how long?

[Caller]

And it.

[Rachel Cruze]

Sorry. Keep going.

[Caller]

I just. And I tell him that like, let's go to the counselor. Let's get the root of the problem. Because that's not his only argument. There are many, many, many other arguments that he just bounces between when he gets in this mindset.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Can I. And you work outside the home, too.

[Caller]

I own a cleaning business.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Do you have enough money in your account to pay the bills for your

[Caller]

home if he did not contribute, I would not have enough to pay by myself because I have employees and cost expenses that I have to take care of on top of.

[Dr. John Deloney]

But I mean, that should not be in your household account. That should be in a business account

[Caller]

in the state of Texas. It's not required to have separation.

[Dr. John Deloney]

It's not about it being required. It's just not wise because it mixes everything because suddenly you need groceries and you're trying to pay somebody else's. Like the hours they put in last week. You get what I'm saying?

[Rachel Cruze]

Just from a clean accounting perspective, having it separate so importance when you're running a small business. So I would do that and then I would have your own account at this point.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah. You're getting to a place where you have your own account. But, but Rachel, my concern is. Started had her own account to make sure the lights stayed on and the in the mortgage stayed paid. He's going to pull out his. What he puts in there every month and you're gonna, you can't. You can't support yourself on that.

[Caller]

Correct. We've created a lifestyle that requires both of our pay.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay.

[Rachel Cruze]

Well, then he gets screwed in the process too, because his lights are going to be cut off in the home that he lives in.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Sure.

[Rachel Cruze]

So.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Well, and, and, and here's the reality. His secret accounts, all of that gets laid bare in a divorce hearing. Right. It's not like he's got this secret pot that he gets to play with when, when the, when one of y' all files, all of that gets put into a big pot that gets divvied up. And so I don't know what he thinks he's preparing for, but it's not Reality.

[Rachel Cruze]

How long have you guys been married?

[Caller]

Sue, we have been together for 19 years with a four year separation because of mental illnesses on his part. And married for nine of those years.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, what.

[Dr. John Deloney]

What is his diagnosis?

[Caller]

Actual diagnosis is bipolar. There have been discussions of schizophrenia and paranoia.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay.

[Caller]

Yeah. But no medication.

[Dr. John Deloney]

He's not. He's not. He's not managing it correct.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, well then that makes sense. Like in my head, that's a safe. That's the piece. Yeah. That's the piece of the puzzle that makes all this make sense.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah.

[Rachel Cruze]

Like it's him. I mean. Yeah, he's not. He's not. Okay. He's not healthy.

[Caller]

Yeah. And even trying to discuss it with him, whether right or wrong on my part, there's no getting.

[Dr. John Deloney]

No, and I don't use this word lightly, but he's not well. He's sick and he's untreated. His illness is untreated, but he's not well. And so you continuing to try to bang your head up against that situation is only going to give you a bruise. Right. And so we have to take care of ourselves when those around us aren't taking care of them. Hey, guys. George here. Listen, 99 times out of 100, when people say, I don't know where my money goes, it's not a math problem, it's a behavior problem. They're not budgeting. Then they're shocked when their bank account hits triple zeros. Well, here's the deal. Winning with money is about doing the boring stuff consistently. And that includes banking someplace that helps you stop guessing with your money, like Fairwinds Credit Union. They're not going to fix your habits. That part's on you. But they do support people who are ready to take control of their money. At Fairwinds, you get a high yield savings account with a great rate to help grow your emergency fund, a checking account that won't nickel and dime you, and up to 10 free savings accounts so you can organize your money on purpose. Because when you stay disciplined, your money gets predictable, manageable, and boring in the best way. So if you're ready for a bank that helps you be intentional, open your Smart Bundle [e-mail] Ramsey and get the Ramsey Beweir debit card to go along with it. That's Fairwinds.org Ramsey insured by the NCUA.

[Rachel Cruze]

Up next in New York City, we have Valerie on the line. Hi, Valerie.

[Caller]

Hi, how are you?

[Rachel Cruze]

Hi. We're doing well. How are you?

[Caller]

Okay. Yeah, I just wanted to get on here I've seen a few of your videos and I love the advice you give to people. And I'm going to start a licensed practical nursing program in August. And I was going to pay my tuition out of pocket. It's $8,000. Unfortunately, my fiance lost his job, so I've been whittling away at my savings, so it no longer seems like an option either way. So I was trying to find a student loan and I didn't think it would be so difficult, but I guess because it's not a college and it is a similar nursing program, they don't. They won't loan money to a school that they're not associated with, like any school loan company. And I really don't know where to go from here. I've never taken out a loan for anything.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Please don't start.

[Caller]

Family.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Valerie, please don't start.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, yeah, we're probably not going to.

[Caller]

We're not.

[Rachel Cruze]

Well, we're not probably. We're not the ones that are going to direct you on how to get a loan. We're the ones to help you get out of debt, not get you in debt. So. Did you say it was $8,000 for the program?

[Caller]

Correct.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Valerie, is this an unaccredited program?

[Caller]

You know, that's the thing, right? It's a. It's a Passaic County Technical Institute. Right. It's a vocational high school and they have an a Furthering Adult learning program.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay.

[Caller]

So that you can get your LPN license. It's a one year program, so I'm really not sure how it's labeled, but when I go and ask loaning companies like Sally Me or something, they try to look for it and they say, oh, we're not associated with this school, so we don't do loans for that. Yeah, the same thing.

[Rachel Cruze]

Just want to make sure that the degree is. It's usable.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah, I would before I gave this college a penny or this program a penny.

[Caller]

Oh, well, this program, I have cousins that have gotten in this program. They paid it out of pocket and they're working and they're making great money.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, so, Val, what you got to do, girl, what you got to do, you gotta. You gotta come up with eight grand in five months. So you need 1,500 to $2,000 a month. What can you do as a side hustle to get that?

[Dr. John Deloney]

Well, I can tell you can stop paying off your. Paying for your fiance. Your fiance needs to go start bagging groceries and like throwing trash and driving Uber, whatever.

[Rachel Cruze]

Oh, yeah, because you're Dwindling your savings

[Dr. John Deloney]

for him, Whatever they got to do.

[Caller]

Well, yeah, we've, we've lived together for a long time, you know, and you know, it's just paying the rent, you know, you, before we were splitting it, splitting the bills. And now I'm covering the whole thing while we're looking. Well, while he's looking for another job in the meantime, he's been selling his things. But you know.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah, let me say it like this. Your choice to cover for his expenses is a choice to delay going to nursing school. It's just that simple. Because you don't have the money. And a bank makes money by loaning you money. And the banks have looked at you and said for whatever reason, we don't feel comfortable giving you this money either for, because you're a loan risk, doesn't sound like you are, or we don't think that the product that you're want to, want to buy with this borrowed money, which in your case is a degree, we don't feel safe giving you that money. And so you don't have it. And so it's a math problem.

[Rachel Cruze]

And I think you can get it. Valerie, you have five, you have five months. So you got to figure out, hey, what does Valerie have to do for Valerie in the next five months to get this eight grand? And it's a year long program. I wonder if you call the admissions office and just say, hey, can I pay the first semester up front and then pay the second half, you know what I mean, where you can kind of delay a payment or two. But we talk to people all the time, Valerie, and they're hustling, they're doing dog walking, they're cleaning houses, they're driving Uber eats, and they're making thousand to $2,000 on side hustles. So that's what I would be doing, Valerie, every night after I leave my full time job. Because what are you making in your job right now? How much are you bringing home a month?

[Caller]

I make $24 an hour, which is about like after taxes, like 7:50 a week.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, well, you got to figure out, number one, how you're going to pay rent, but number two, how, what you're going to do and the boundaries you're going to make with the boyfriend of that you're not going to be supporting him this whole time because you guys, you aren't married. I understand you guys are in a living situation, you have to pay the rent. But girl, I would figure out, yeah, how am I going to make this cash and I would be working nights and weekends to figure it out.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Please don't take a loan out though, please.

[Rachel Cruze]

Let's go to Dan in Charlotte. Hi, Dan.

[Caller]

Hi there.

How are you guys doing?

[Rachel Cruze]

Hi. We're doing great. How can we help?

[Caller]

Great. I've got a quick question for you guys. So I'm 24, making around $80,000 a year, thinking about buying a $7,000 toy. So right now I drive an older car. It's an old Corolla with a little bit over 100,000 miles on it.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Oh, yeah, just getting started. Just getting started, Dan.

[Caller]

That's right, that's right. But thinking about adding a second one to the fleet. And this would, funny enough, be a toy that is more expensive than my current car, but it would cost me about $7,000. And I'm wondering a if that's a wise decision to spend that much money on a toy at this phase of life, and B, just kind of like the pract practicality of owning two cars. It's a Miata. Mazda Miata.

[Dr. John Deloney]

That's not a toy, Dan. That's a statement. That's an identity, brother. That's an identity.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. Oh, man. Dan, do you have any debt? Do you have consumer debt?

[Caller]

No, ma'.

Am.

[Rachel Cruze]

No. Do you have savings?

[Caller]

Yeah, I've got about 22,000 saved in a brokerage just in money market mutual fund.

[Rachel Cruze]

Good for you. Would you take the 7,000, take the 7,000 out of that to buy it. And your Corolla, how much is it worth?

[Dr. John Deloney]

A million dollars. Because it will never stop running, ever.

[Caller]

That's exactly. Honestly, you know, I have some co workers who say I should, I should drive them to the ground, but I think I'd be 44 if I did that, bro.

[Dr. John Deloney]

I've been down that road. I tried to outlast a Corolla and

[Rachel Cruze]

I g up it will outlast you.

[Dr. John Deloney]

It's an apocalypse vehicle. They'll never stop running.

[Rachel Cruze]

Outlast you. So it's what pro if you sold it though, what, five, five thousand, seven thousand? Yeah.

[Caller]

Maybe four.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes. Okay, so the things I'm looking for, the big check marks of, can you just go spend money? Number one, do you have it? Number two, financially, are you in a place that that money would be better spent in the present? Meaning like getting you ahead financially, which would be to pay off debt or have an emergency fund. You have those. So check, check. And then anything with motors and wheel, you don't want the value of those to be more than half of your annual income, but you're going to be way under that, making 80. So, yeah, Dan. I think the new identity is Dan and a Miata.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Oh, Dan and a Miata.

[Rachel Cruze]

Is that the little two seater convertible?

[Caller]

Yes, that's right. Yeah. A little tiny car.

[Dr. John Deloney]

The noise it makes is

[Rachel Cruze]

hey.

[Caller]

Yeah.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So we've got. We've got workday Dan and then we got weekend Dan. The thing you have to factor in, brother, the weekend part is you have to factor in you'll have two registrations, two tanks of gas to like, you'll have to insure this car too. So it's not just a matter of a 7,000. And I would get a dollar amount on what is your monthly expenses. Interestingly enough, I kept our Corolla. Like my wife bought a Corolla. That was the first car to college. We had it for years. And I just kept it in the driveway as a third car for us. And it was when I did the math on it was costing me about 75 bucks a month just to sit there. And that's when I sold it. Because between like if I took the registration and the insurance for the year and all that, and I divided it by 12, I got about 75 bucks a month. And that was a long time ago. So you may be up to 100, 125 bucks a month just in the privilege of keeping the.

[Caller]

The.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Your identity car parked in the driveway. Right. So if that's worth it to you, cool. But you can afford it.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. Dan, what are you doing on April 7th? Do you know?

[Caller]

April 7th? I don't think I have anything planned.

[Rachel Cruze]

Well, maybe you can come to the Ramsey show live. Ken Coleman, George Campbell and I are gonna be in Charlotte then. So if you hold on the line, Christian's gonna pick up. We're gonna give you two tickets and come hang out with us in the Miata. And if you come and you bring that Miata, wave your hand in the audience. Cause it's a smaller audience on these shots.

[Dr. John Deloney]

You're have to get your other. The person who takes the other ticket's gonna have to hold their breath in that tiny little car.

[Rachel Cruze]

I know. We'll come out and get a picture with it. So y. Hopefully, Dan, you can join us. Yeah. In Charlotte for the Ramsey Show Live coming up.

[Caller]

Hey, what's up, guys? It's Jade.

[Rachel Cruze]

Listen, my husband and I drive used vehicles and we really do plan on keeping those running for a long time. So we trust Christian Brothers Automotive to take care of them. Their team is honest, their shops are super clean. And what I Love is they don't try to upsell us on things that we don't need. I personally feel really confident walking into Christian Brothers because I know that no one's going to try to take advantage of me or scare me into unneeded repairs. Christian Brothers gets it. So schedule a service [e-mail] Ramsey and

[Caller]

get 10 off your visit. That's up to a 250 value.

[Rachel Cruze]

C stores for details. So we just mentioned that we are heading to Charlotte for the Ramsay show live. It is going on tour. The show is. And we're also going to be in Denver, Phoenix and Anaheim. So if you have not come. We went to Chicago back in the fall and Orlando and did some live tapings.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So fun.

[Rachel Cruze]

Dude, I know. How was it for you? Because we weren't at the same city.

[Dr. John Deloney]

We were in the raddest place. It was like an old punk rock club. When I walked to the door, I just started smiling. I was like, this feels like home for me. But yeah, dude, they. It was awesome. And we had a rad debt free scream. We had one woman who came up and was like, I'm getting laid off tomorrow. What do I do? It was a real heavy, emotional moment. Everyone was open, honest. It was. It was just a great time to see fans live. And they got to ask questions of us personally. And so it was a blast.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, so we. We take the questions that we take on this show, but it's gonna be live in a room and it's a. And they're smaller venues, which is fun. So we're able to hang out with the audience some. You know, we. I don't know. It's just a really enjoyable experience doing the show live with people, but also them participating in it. There was a couple in. When we were in Chicago, cute young couple. And they had this like big debate because she spent so much on Amazon and he. But they're like debt free and all of this. So there was like a big, like, audience.

[Dr. John Deloney]

The whole audience is with you. Y.

[Rachel Cruze]

We're like back and forth. And of course George and I kind of disagree because George is more on his side of like saving. And I'm like, girl, you go spend. Because we had worked hard and you can, you can.

[Dr. John Deloney]

We had somebody in Orlando that would answer before we did. And they're like. I mean, they. They didn't drink the Ramsay Kool Aid. They somehow got the Ramsay cocaine. They were like snorted off the counter. And we were disagreeing with. We're like, hey, we're. We're up here. It was. It was awesome.

[Rachel Cruze]

It was so fun. So if you want some tickets, go to Ramsey Solutions.com/events or click the link in the show notes. If you're listening on podcast or watching YouTube again, Charlotte, Denver, Phoenix, and Anaheim, we're heading to you in just a couple of weeks. So we'll be. We'll be on the road soon.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So fun.

[Rachel Cruze]

All right, let's go to Rapid City and Mike is on the line.

[Caller]

Hi, Mike, Rachel, John, it's so awesome to be talking to you guys. I feel like I am in such good hands right now. I can't even tell you. John, I have to say something. I thought I was the only person that still said radio.

[Dr. John Deloney]

No way, dude. No way. That's red. I'm in. I'm in.

[Caller]

And Rachel, I. I was watching your dad when you were like. I was listening to your dad when you were like 15 years old, and

[Rachel Cruze]

oh, my gosh, how far you have

[Caller]

come and what you have done with your life and the books, it is just amazing to me. And to be talking to you right now is such an honor.

[Rachel Cruze]

Thank you, Mike. That is so nice.

[Caller]

I'm gonna get to the point here.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Hold on, hold on, hold on. Mike, I just gotta say, he called out what amazing things you've done with your life. And for me, I got. I say rad, too good, Mike. Thanks for kicking me while I'm down, brother.

[Caller]

Let me butter your bread. John, you have questions, you ask questions. You show such insight that your instincts are supernatural, my friend.

[Dr. John Deloney]

You're the nicest guy ever. You're the nicest guy.

[Rachel Cruze]

Thank you, Mike. Just the encouragement we needed.

[Caller]

You guys deserve it. You team. Honestly, I love you guys. You know, when. When Dave decides to quit working, which, you know, that'll never happen, just this organization is in great hands with you all, and I'm really happy.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Thank you, homie.

[Rachel Cruze]

So kind. Okay, how can we help, Mike? How can we help you? You've helped us.

[Caller]

So my. My wife and I have been married about 15 years, and a couple years into the marriage, I. You know, I found out that she had racked up like $9,000 in secret debt behind my back. And, you know, back in those days, we were pretty broke. I mean, we were making. We had. We had baby twin girls, and we were making under $40,000 a year. And, I mean, it almost broke our marriage early on, and I buckled down and in about two years or so, I got it paid off. But ever since then, we have had our separated, and my goal for my Conversation with you guys today is to join our finances again because it's the right thing to do. And the goal is to really focus on our girls college savings fund. I've got all of the steps done except for number five and number seven. And I really want to focus on number five right now. And that's kind of like how I want to bring her in on this.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, I'm really worried that she's not

[Caller]

going to want to.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, so why would she not want to? And have you guys talked about this?

[Caller]

No. I'm scared, honestly. I mean, it's been, it's been peace since then, right? Like, yeah, but it's been.

[Dr. John Deloney]

It was an arms agreement. It's not real peace. Right. It's like you'll have a treaty signed, but y' all are still staring at each other from the opposite sides of the table. Right. You get what I'm saying?

[Caller]

Yeah, I mean, I, I see that. I mean, I feel that. I feel some resentment because, you know, I feel like she's the spender and I'm the saver and.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Well, hold on. That's my big question is you have a lived experience where she. We call it financial infidelity. She cheated on you with her money right behind your back.

[Caller]

Yeah.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And that was 13 years ago. And so my question for you is, is your fear that she's going to drain the accounts and do stuff behind your back, is that. Is that a real ongoing fear or is that.

[Caller]

It is. Because, I mean, when she sees. Because she'll spend her. Her account down to nothing, you know, on a monthly basis, and when she sees, you know, 35, $40,000 in a checking account, I'm afraid what she's gonna do with it.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay. I want. That's the real issue. The real issue is not the combining of the checking accounts, which we. I, I wholeheartedly with all my being endorsed. The real issue is you want to save for your daughter's college and you feel you have, you have an obligation in the middle of your chest to help your daughters out, and you watch your wife burn the thing down. And what you're trying to do is backdoor that conversation with, let's just join our money. And the real conversation is you have a picture about what you want your daughter's life to be when they walk out your door at 18 and your wife has a different picture. And y' all gotta align those.

[Caller]

Who. What do I say? What are the magic words? How do I broach this? I mean, I. It's gonna be very Defensive. The.

[Dr. John Deloney]

The most effective path I've seen. Can I give it to you real quick?

[Caller]

It. Let's hear it.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Here's what's going on. Here's the story that I am making up about what's going on. Here's how I feel about that story. Here's what I would love to happen next. And when you.

[Caller]

Sounds very, very, very chill. Well, it doesn't sound like that would start a fight.

[Dr. John Deloney]

No. Because. Because what most people do in your situation, myself included. Right. I have to really fight. This is to sit down and say, you spend all your money and I'm trying to save for the K. We have to do a better job of fill in the blank. Fill in the blank. Fill in the blank. And when you start conversations with. You don't. And you never. And I'm doing all of this, then what you do is you walk up and you throw a grenade at somebody, and they're either going to throw a grenade right back at you or they're going to run, they're going to fight or flee. That's the only way you can protect yourself. When you come down and say, hey, I've made up a story about you. And the story I've made up, and that's you owning what's going on inside your spirit. I've made up a story about you. That you don't care about the kids going to college, that you'd rather have a bunch of shiny toys or objects or whatever she's buying. And that makes me feel alone in this marriage. And that makes me feel scared to death for what our daughters are going to do. I would love it if we could get on the same page and create a plan together so that our daughters have their college taken care of or 50%, whatever you all agree on.

[Caller]

You know, John, as I'm talking to you about this, I'm realizing that it's really not the money, because I have the money I make. I make 200 grand a year plus. And I can. I can float this. I can. I can do it on my own. But I, you know, my place in my marriage with my wife right now is better than it ever has been. And I just feel like this is a missing link, that it's just not right. It doesn't sit with me. And I want. I want us to be a unit. And I want to trust her.

[Rachel Cruze]

And I think all of that. Mike, like what you just said, say that to her. Say that to her. Because the truth is. And you're feeling this is when there's a part of your marriage that you're not engaged in. And you guys are living in two separate lives and you just sweep it under the rug because it's just easier. The actual intimacy is built when you lift up the rug and you deal with the stuff you've been sweeping under for 13 years. You guys actually are going to have a better marriage on the other end. Yeah, it might get a little spicier and there in some of the conversations, the push through those because you guys have created good habits to this point. And so just apply those to these money conversations. But everything you just said to us, Mike say to her,

[Dave Ramsey]

I love entrepreneurs. Don't forget, guys, I started my company on a card table myself. So I know what it's like to have people counting on you, your team, your family, not to mention your customers. And when you're the one signing the paychecks, you can't afford to fly blind. But I'll be honest, early on, one thing that nearly sunk us was wasting time with spreadsheets that didn't add up because business units didn't talk to each other. I finally told my team, just fix it. And they did. We got netsuite. That was years ago and we've never looked back. See, netsuite isn't just for tech giants. It's built for growing businesses like yours. Over 33,000 businesses already run on NetSuite, including a lot that started just like you. And now with built in AI, NetSuite is helping them even more. It's one system connected to every part of your business. For real time Insights, not guesswork, NetSuite AI flags inventory issues, cash flow risks, even supplier delays before they become problems. So you can trust the deck data, stop wasting time and make the right decisions faster. Take a free product tour [e-mail] Ramsey. That's netsuite.com Ramsey.

[Rachel Cruze]

Up next is Victoria in Philadelphia. Hi, Victoria. Welcome to the show.

[Caller]

Hi. Thank you. So my question is, I'm in baby step two and I wanted to know, is it okay for me to spend beyond just the four walls of necessities, to spend quality time or make memories with a family member who is terminally ill?

[Rachel Cruze]

Oh, gosh, I'm so sorry. Well, I mean, yeah, I mean, you know, there's not a right or wrong, I would say in the moral code of life of how to do your money. There's a plan at which will get you out of debt faster and a plan that won't. But you get to make the decision within that plan. Of, you know, how intense you want to be. Is there a. I always. I always hate to ask this.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Who's the person? What's going on?

[Caller]

On?

So it's. It's my mom. She is in her mid-70s, and she has dementia. She's in about the middle stages. So, you know, I can't definitively say that she won't be able to go have lunch with me or go get her nails done in a year, but I can say that the window for us to be able to do that is getting smaller.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah.

[Caller]

And I do want to spend time with her, and she enjoys doing those things, and she enjoys going shopping, but I don't feel comfortable with her paying for it either.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Sure. Does she enjoy those things specifically, or does she enjoy being with her daughter?

[Caller]

She enjoys being with me. She does. So she's also lost her. Her driving privileges a couple of months ago. And so I know getting out of the house and doing things, which typically involves spending money, are important to her and make her feel more, like, quote, normal.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Sure. Well, and that's what I was wondering is there's a difference between. We're gonna go get a cup of coffee, and we're gonna spend a couple hours together, like, doing whatever. I'm gonna send you a bunch of questions for humans, Dex, just as my gift to you. Like, we're gonna just get to know each other again, and we're gonna talk and we're gonna tell old stories, look at photo albums, whatever. Are there things you can do that are less expensive? Because I'm a hundred percent with you. I would spend every moment I got with my mom every moment that I could. I get that. But you can take her to do a bunch of really fancy, expensive things, and. Or you can spend quality time with her. And I. I guess what I'm trying to say is you don't have to do either or. No. No time with Mom. I'm on this baby step two journey. I'm trying to get out of debt. Debt and. Or I need to. We got to go get your nails done. Buy a new dress every week. We got to go out to fancy dinners. We got to do expensive stuff. Is there ways y' all can spend amazing quality and rich time together that doesn't require spending a whole bunch of money? And it just takes some creativity on your part.

[Caller]

Yeah. And I. I do think we. I try to find the balance now, but I am feeling sort of morally again. I guess I shouldn't use morally, but I'm feeling conflicted between my wanting to dedicate my wholeheartedly to baby step two, but also wanting to do things with my mom that I know she won't be able to do in the future.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Is that. Can I ask you a real hard question?

[Caller]

Sure.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Is that your pain or is that hers?

[Caller]

That's mine. He's not really aware of all of the ramifications.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay. So the reason I'm asking is if it's inside your chest, I want you to spend some time grieving it because it's less about, I think, what you're grieving and tell me if I'm wrong. What you're grieving is not that we only have three or four times we can go get her our nails done together. It's that in 10 years, I won't be able to do this with her anymore. In four years, I won't be able to do this anymore. Anymore.

[Caller]

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So the grief is probably.

[Caller]

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

The grief is less on the. The thing and more on, oh, this. This relationship that I've had with this woman for seven. For. For. Your whole life is coming to an end. It's going to become a new relationship.

[Caller]

Yes, it probably is that.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay. What I want you to do is don't try to bury that in expenses and don't try to bury that in shiny things. I want you to experience that as the grief that it is. That's heartbreaking. That's sad,

[Caller]

Right?

Okay. I could try.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Well, and it. Here, here's the.

[Caller]

The.

[Dr. John Deloney]

The magic is grief demands a witness. You have to have a couple of people that are not your mom that you can share how heartbreaking this is. You have to have a couple of friends that you can talk to about this. I would love for you to write your mom a letter. Letter and read it to her. I have something I want to tell you. You did a great job. You've been an amazing mom to me. And I want. I. I would rather. Instead of. I don't. I want to try to cram as many nail sessions in. And by the way, those are important. Take your mom and get her nails done. That's amazing. I want there to be nothing left unsaid. Do you get what I mean?

[Rachel Cruze]

There. Yeah. There's a. A power in that. Victoria,

[Caller]

I hear you.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And can I just tell you on behalf of everybody that's struggling with parents with dementia, I hate it. It's evil. It's the worst. I hate it with all my guts, and I hate that you're going through this.

[Caller]

Thank you.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah. Your mom won the lottery with you. It's awesome to hear somebody that cares about their mom.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. No, but it's a good point. John on. And it's all that when we talk about our money, there's always the root issue, whether we're talking about a marriage issue or whatever it may be, but even a grief. Grief of the grief of losing a parent and what you're walking through. And the immediate knee jerk reaction is because I get it. As she was talking, I was like, oh, yeah, I want these experiences with her. And so that means we have to go do these things. You know what I mean? The action towards it, but getting to the root of the motivation of what's even going on under that.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah, actually what I'm grieving is. Yeah, I'm about to lose my mom.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And she's still gonna be alive.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And that's painful.

[Rachel Cruze]

Pain. So hard. So hard. All right, let's go to Ethan in Los Angeles. Hey, Ethan, welcome to the show.

[Caller]

Hey, how's it going?

[Rachel Cruze]

Doing great. How can we you help?

[Caller]

Hey. Located a little bit far away from Los Angeles. That's the closest city, but all good. Yeah, I, So my question is, I, I bought a house almost about two years ago and, you know, I know it needed some work to it and I, I, you know, looking to have kids this year, but there's so much work that needs to be done to it. I might have to push that out to next year or if I really prioritize this year, I can get it done. But I also want to start investing again. I had to take it out to buy this house. I think I'm on baby step four, so I already got a savings and all that, but I'm just wondering, you know, what percentage of my monthly income should be towards the house and what should be towards investing or should I focus on fixing the house so I could have kids? Because I.

[Rachel Cruze]

Why can't you have kids in the house you're in now? Now, is there danger?

[Caller]

There's. Yeah, yeah, there's a. I mean, when we got it, there was mold, foundation cracks, framing issues, and we fixed the framing issues and a lot of the mold, but there's still mold upstairs. There's leaks in the house. I'm trying to fix those. I just finished the chimney, which was like four different things that took me like four months to do, so.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, well, what I would probably do, Ethan, is baby step four is investing 15% of your income into retirement. So I probably would jump start that. I mean, I would get that going and then any money you have left over. Then you guys can cash flow some of these renovations and remember too a baby takes nine months, you know, so maybe you guys start the journey and you'll have a Runway if you will before the baby actually gets here too. So I always, yeah, I always hate people putting off things like getting married or having kids or something when it comes to something financial. And I know this is obviously the, and you want it to be safe that they are going to be living in. So I totally, totally understand that. But I wouldn't kick the can down the road so long like I would, I would, I would get on it. So I would just do the minimum of what you guys need. And if you guys want to start a family, then start a family and then you guys will have a good probably you know that nine month Runway during the pregnancy to continue to do repairs and cash flow the savings.

[Caller]

Okay. All right, I understand.

[Dr. John Deloney]

All right.

[Caller]

Well I appreciate it. Thank you.

[Rachel Cruze]

Absolutely. And then yeah, good luck on the, on the next journey. But you guys, yeah, when you can start investing as early as possible when you get to that baby step four, I would do that 15%. I mean it's kind of a non negotiable for me. And then anything above that be saving for things you want to do, whether it's replace a car, vacation, fix a house. But that's beyond the 15% going into retail retirement.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Hey, let's play a quick game of would you rather, would you rather keep

[Dave Ramsey]

overpaying your phone company every month or

[Dr. John Deloney]

save 600 bucks a year with no contract and no price hikes ever? Easy answer. That's why I love Boost Mobile. With their low rates you can unlock up to 600 bucks in savings over

[Dave Ramsey]

the so called big carriers. You can bring your phone, keep your

[Dr. John Deloney]

number and pay just 25 bucks a month forever on the unlimited package plan because you've got better things to do with your money.

[Dave Ramsey]

So go to boostmobile.com Ramsey to make the switch today.

[Dr. John Deloney]

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[Rachel Cruze]

Welcome back to the Ramsey show in the Fairwinds Credit Union studio. I am Rachel Cruz hosting this hour with Dr. John DeLoney and we are answering your questions. So give us a call at 888-25-5225. All right, let's go to Sam in Hartford, Connecticut. Hi Sam.

[Caller]

Hi, how's it going?

[Rachel Cruze]

Hi, we're doing great. How are you?

[Caller]

You I'm all right. Can't complain. Just another day out here, I guess. I was. I was listening to your guys show and I figured I'd call in today,

[Dr. John Deloney]

so I'm glad you called in. What's up, brother?

[Caller]

Not much. I got. So I got a house that's a little bit out of my price range that I bought probably about four years ago now, and it's rental property, and I have two of my apartments that are vacant that need to be rehabbed. I completely gutted them down the stud. So I guess my question is if I should apply for a HELOC. I'm almost out of baby step two. I have about $8,000 in credit card debt left, but I'm starting to get to the point where I can't really afford the home.

[Rachel Cruze]

Is it a duplex? Is it. What is it one building and two units? Or is it two separate?

[Caller]

It's a three fan. It's a three family home.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay.

[Caller]

I currently live in one of them, and then I rent the one I live in out during the summertime, and then I move on to a boat that I have not been able to sell for the last. I don't know how many years. Four years now.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Can I call something out since you called us? You seem to always be on to the next ski team. And like, I'm gonna buy a boat and then I'm gonna buy a. A family home.

[Caller]

I lived on a. Yeah, I lived on a boat prior to buying the house. And then.

[Dr. John Deloney]

No, I got it, I got it. But like, you always have a good idea, a next good idea, and it feels like all these good ideas are starting to close in around you because you gutted a house that you can't finish. You have a house that you can't afford, you got a boat you can't sell, and now you want to take out a leverage against the house that you can't afford yet. And I guess at some point, what I want to tell you is, like, at some point you got to pay the piper. And I would suggest trying to deal in that reality and not trying to float this thing with yet another idea, another thing off of Instagram or something, and get another loan and leverage the whole property against that loan, by the way. And, like, what would make you think you could pay that HELOC off?

[Caller]

I was kind of hoping to get them both. Both the other two remodels. The rental property during the summer probably brings in about eight grand a month.

[Rachel Cruze]

Eight grand a month for just the

[Dr. John Deloney]

one unit on one Unit.

[Caller]

Yeah, yeah. Where, where the house is at is wonderful.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay.

[Caller]

Okay.

How high travel area.

[Rachel Cruze]

And both other units are, Are, are gutted, you said, correct?

[Caller]

Yeah, yeah, they were in pretty. I'd said the house is super old when I bought it.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, so how, how much money would it take to, to fix both of those up? Each one individually?

[Caller]

I could probably, I do all the work myself, so I could probably do them for both under 50, 000, I think.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So what if this summer you didn't get on your boat and live there for a year and you spent the summer working your butt off getting these things finished?

[Caller]

Yeah. Yeah. Well, then I need somewhere to live and then I would lose the summer rental.

[Dr. John Deloney]

No, I mean you rent out the one room or the one unit and you work on the other ones.

[Caller]

No. So there's three units in there, the ones on one.

[Rachel Cruze]

The other two are gutted. Is the, is the boat near you?

[Caller]

Yeah, it's about a mile from my house.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, perfect. Go live on the boat. Rent out the unit for eight grand a month. Use that to help cash flow these renovations. And I would just. Cash. Cash flow one at a time, Sam. So, no, we're not going to tell you to take out a heloc. Now the other, the other option would be to look at everything in full with two vacant gutted units, yours. And how much would the whole thing sell for? And do you want to get out of this deal? There could be an exit here because I, I mean, I don't know if you enjoy living next to renters that you renting from you and these other units. You know what I mean? The whole, whole, the whole thing. So I just wonder if you, if you could get out with some equity still, even though they're still gutted, but have another investor come in and buy it and then you go buy something small that you can afford and you have to worry about all the rental stuff.

[Caller]

Okay. Yeah, that's kind of where I'm at because the house has a lot of equity in it.

[Rachel Cruze]

How much? Yeah, how much do you owe on it?

[Caller]

I owe 4:50 right now.

[Rachel Cruze]

And how much would it go for

[Caller]

for those, the three families? That's probably about the same shape as mine. I don't know. The inside of it looks like, but from the outside they're about the same. I think they sold for 1.8.

[Rachel Cruze]

Oh my gosh.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah. But is that completely redone with all new appliances and all new.

[Caller]

I, I never checked and saw. I never looked at their listing. I don't know if the old lady that when she passed away, if it could redid it and then sold it or if it was redone when she was alive.

[Dr. John Deloney]

I would get a realtor. I never, I would go to ramseysolutions.com and get a realtor in area, a real estate pro and I would get real numbers on what they think they could flip it for.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yep.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And I would take any cash that I got, had extra and count my lucky stars and not do this again.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. Because even if, even if you had to drop the price. 400,000, that's 1.4 million. You know what I mean?

[Dr. John Deloney]

You crazy? Since 66% of it is gutted down to the studs, imagine you're going to get 30% of 1.8 million or 40% of 1.8 million million.

[Caller]

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And so yeah, even then you win, you get out of this mess.

[Caller]

Yeah, yeah, I know I'm not negative in the house. I'm just curious the I guess what your guys opinion.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, so. So it would be, it would be option A or B. For me it's A. I'm going to just slowly redo each unit because you'll love the life you're in. You'll like having the renters, you like the income you, whatever. And you're going to pay it off eventually because. Cause it's, I mean it's A great. It's $450,000. Right. So you would just put it in baby step six and you keep it but you just do the renovation slowly with cash. Or option B is I'm just going to eject out of this whole thing and holy crap. Make a, make a lot of money. Probably go buy something with cash, Sam, you know what I mean? For real. Go buy some with cash and then just enjoy your life.

[Caller]

Yeah, that's kind of where I'm at. I don't have much for investing. I just, I'm more at the. Like I said, I'm on baby stuff too. I've got about 8,000 left on credit card debt.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yep, that's right.

[Caller]

And then I was going to move on, but for sure that's why I wasn't sure if I should take on more debt.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Please don't. Yeah, you've worked too hard to get here, man. You've worked too hard.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, yeah. The no, the no debt piece is a, is a non starter for us.

[Caller]

So.

[Rachel Cruze]

No, no heloc. So again it's either cash flowing those renovations or just cashing out because you bought at a good time and apparently a great area if that's true with a million dollars. Yeah, and that's always hard, you guys. The whole investment property side of life that people look for and or fall into thinking that it's going to be easy. Passive income continues to come back to show that it's stressful, you guys.

[Dr. John Deloney]

I've also noticed this on my daughter Joseph, 10. She's all into home renovation shows. She loves watching them. And I noticed the other day the demo side, they always show everyone having fun. They play the cool music and they got sledgehammers and they're taking all the stuff out. They don't spend a lot of time when the house is down to the studs because they show these pros come in and wire it all up and then they show them at the fixture store.

[Rachel Cruze]

It's just like a boom.

[Dr. John Deloney]

It's a nightmare when you're looking at at a house full of studs and you have to level it and fix it. It's not fun. And that's when the Instagram like oh, this is so fun.

[Rachel Cruze]

So romantic.

[Dr. John Deloney]

To die.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah.

[Dave Ramsey]

You know, one of the first things I discovered working in the financial world is how absolutely devastating it is when the breadwinner of a family dies and there's too little life insurance or none at all. Grieving families are suddenly left behind, scrambling to pay bills and trying to make ends meet. I also discovered that there are a lot of rip offs in the life insurance world like that whole life crap post as an investment opportunity. What you need is level term life insurance, usually 10 to 12 times your income, which is the smartest, most affordable way to protect your family. The key is finding an independent broker who represents a ton of companies and works for you, not for the insurance company. This is exactly what my friend Jeff Zander and his team at Zander Insurance are all about. They shop the term life companies to find you the best options and they've been around for over 95 years, so you know they'll be there when you need them. Zander is the real deal and that's why they've handled all my personal insurance for over 25 years. I trust them and you can too. Visit Zander.com for instant online quotes or for a more personal touch, give them a call at 800-356-42882.

[Rachel Cruze]

Up next is Chris in Louisville. Hi Chris, welcome to the show.

[Caller]

Hi, how are you?

[Dr. John Deloney]

Are you doing?

[Rachel Cruze]

Hi, we're doing great. How can we help today?

[Caller]

Yeah, so I was just wondering, I have some, I have a little bit of debt And I'm recently wanting to move closer to a girlfriend and I don't know how to kind of navigate that.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. How much debt do you have?

[Caller]

About 38,000.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. And how much do you make

[Caller]

of 2,200amonth?

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yikes.

[Rachel Cruze]

What are you doing for work?

[Caller]

I work in a factory.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay.

[Caller]

And is there, that's my net, my take home.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. And do you have a job where the girlfriend is?

[Caller]

No, but there are a lot of opportunities there.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. How long have you guys been dating?

[Caller]

A couple months.

[Rachel Cruze]

How far, how far is she from you?

[Caller]

About two hours.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. And how much will all have you, have you added up all the moving expenses and the difference of the housing you're paying now for rent versus where you would live? I mean, have you done all that math?

[Caller]

I've looked at it a little bit, but I haven't done an in depth plan out.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. So I mean for now my goal would be to get out of debt as quickly as possible. So I don't know if living where you're living, working where you're working now gives you that opportunity or where she is, is there a better job that you can make more money? And it's a plus plus on your side of the financial spectrum. I mean, I would ask those questions, but I don't know a move. God, switching jobs, everything for a couple month relationship, just.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah, you feel. Here's the thing, I, back when I was dating a quarter century ago, I'm a guy who falls hard. Okay. And I would get what I would call love dumb or love blind or love stupid, whatever you want say to say. And I only have a job because people make really feel really big firm plans with their relationships and they don't work out. And so when as you're talking, what I'm going to is what happens when you go down there. All these quote unquote great opportunities don't materialize. Y' all break up two months later and this $40,000 of debt has followed you. Plus whatever loan you think you're going to take out to get the move even there, get deposit on your place, get a apartment, all that kind of stuff. And so I, I wouldn't move. If you were my friend or my son or my brother, I wouldn't tell. I would tell you don't move unless you have a job lined up that you start on this date.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And you have a place to live that you already know you can afford and you've already done some of the math on the back of a napkin. Not Even a napkin on a spreadsheet that says, here's how much taxes are going to be, here's what my take home pay is going to be, and here's my plan to continue to get out of debt as I'm going. And I know that makes a fun ruiner because you're like, dude, I finally met somebody. I totally get that sentiment and feeling. In fact, I love that feeling. But man, it can get you in a lot of trouble and turn a 38, 000 mess into a $50,000 mess and a broken heart and an estranged town all at the same time. And so I would be much more concrete in what are my plans? What am I going to do? Not just I'm in love, I'm in love, I'm in love. I. Women love.

[Caller]

Yeah, that makes sense.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yep. Absolutely. So, yeah, if there's a job and you got everything and you're like, hey, this is. This is an upside for me, plus I get to live close to the girlfriend, then yeah, then that's great. You can make. You can move while you're in baby step two. If you cash flow it, it's just going to pause that process for a little bit. But don't let the. Yeah. The love cloud some good judgment and actually have a plan in place.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And I like the idea of you getting another job job and making way more money than you're making hundred. So look for a new job in that community and go, go line it up.

[Rachel Cruze]

And regardless, be working nights and weekends with a side hustle and get this $38,000 paid off.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yes.

[Rachel Cruze]

All right, let's go to Corey in Nashville. Hi, Corey.

[Caller]

Hello. Good afternoon.

[Rachel Cruze]

Hello. Thanks for calling. How can we help?

[Caller]

Yes, I was calling on regards to a collection that we have on our credit. My wife and I dealing with a landlord from three years ago. I've been contacting this collection agency, trying to settle with them, and I think I'm settling for too much. But beggars can't be choosers. We need to settle this, get this off of our credit so that we can move into another rental home. But the collection agency is not willing to send me an offer letter. And I just. Why feel very hesitant. Yes.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yes.

[Rachel Cruze]

Don't send them a dime until you have something in writing.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Why?

[Rachel Cruze]

Why are they not. Why. Why are they not doing it?

[Caller]

They. The reasoning was that if they send an offer letter, they're saying that other people have used that to get into other rentals. I just don't see that adding up.

[Dr. John Deloney]

You know, I've never heard that. It might. That doesn't mean it's not true. But I've never heard.

[Caller]

Heard that.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Tell them that you can't make a payment until you have something in writing.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. What do you. What do you owe them?

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah.

[Rachel Cruze]

How much do you owe?

[Caller]

So originally the debt was just. Just shy or just a little over 5,000. And now over the course of three years, with interest, it bumped up to 57. They were willing to settle at 4, and I kind of needed off of my credit side.

[Rachel Cruze]

Corey. Do you guys have the cash?

[Caller]

Yeah, we do.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. And you've already offered them for. Is that right?

[Caller]

Yeah. Why? I started off a lot lower.

Okay.

[Rachel Cruze]

And they wouldn't budge.

[Caller]

I've been working on this for a couple. Yeah, for a couple of months. And I think that they know that we. I need it off of my. Yeah, but my credit as well. To be able to move into another home.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah, but let me say you're in the driver's seat, too. Y' all are back. Both you. It's a game of chicken, because they need. They have already made. Come to terms with. They're not going to get this money back. And so the fact that you're offering them four grand is a huge olive branch for them, too. I would hang up and call somebody back and hang up and call somebody back and say, I've received a settlement offer for four grand. I'm prepared to write the check, but I just need an email. I need something in writing that confirms this is the final offer, and I will. I will get you paid.

[Caller]

And if. And if they don't, just don't set them a dime, huh?

[Dr. John Deloney]

Say I can't just tell them I can't send you a dime until I have confirmation in writing.

[Rachel Cruze]

They lie, Corey.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah, they lie. That's what they do.

[Rachel Cruze]

These collectors. Yeah, they'll take your money and be like, we didn't get a payment. What are you talking about? We didn't say to settle. We said. We said no. You got to pay the full 5,600, you know.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Well, in fact, it's. It's doubled. It's gone to 8,000 because we sold it to, like. Yeah, you just can't.

[Caller]

Don't get.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Here's the two rules of thumb. Have to get an offer in writing and never give them electronic access to your checking account because they're going to want to withdraw it immediately and say, no, no, no, I will. I will. I'll get you paid another way.

[Caller]

Okay?

[Dr. John Deloney]

And I think they're. I think they're playing games. Yeah, I know. Yeah, yeah.

[Rachel Cruze]

It's just a, it's a game, Corey. And at this point it's been three years because who, who owns the debt right now? Which, what, what collections agency?

[Caller]

Genesis.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, so look them up online and you're going to see this like made website. I mean there, it's someone in a cubicle, Corey, who got this debt put on their desk that they're having to collect. And then in two months, if it's not paid, there's a, there's another collections agency that's going to buy bad debt from this collections agency. And it just hops around like it's just, it, it's a crummy, crummy industry. And the turnover, the person you're talking to is probably not even going to be in that job in 60 days. So like you're not dealing with intelligent life over there. Okay, so to play hardball, that's fine. They don't scare you. They shouldn't scare you. They should be scared because they need money. So.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And you've got $4,000 to give them

[Rachel Cruze]

and you've got it. So you're like, I have it, you have to submit. And if they say no, all right, no deal, hang up, call, call again, call again, just like John said. And it's such a pain in the butt, but it's the way to do it. But do, yeah, you have to get it in writing. Corey, We've heard horror stories of people not doing this and sending these types of companies money and then they change the deal. Anya.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And so please, please let me pay you this money. Please let you give me my money. I just need it in writing.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yep, that's it. But no, I would not send them a dime. And then you guys just need to have some and patience because you're urgent to get it off your credit to go and buy a home or to go to another rental property. But don't let that urgency, you know, cause you to make a big mistake. Be patient, be thinking through this and get it in writing.

[Caller]

Foreign.

[Rachel Cruze]

If you're looking for a more budget friendly way to save on medical costs and stay true to your values, Christian Healthcare Ministries is a great option to think about. CHM is not health insurance. It's a health cost sharing ministry. A biblical community based way for Christians to share each other's medical bills. That means no enrollment deadlines and you can choose any doctor or hospital you want. That kind of freedom is big, especially if you're self employed between jobs or you just need Something that fits your budget better. CHM has been around for decades, faithfully serving the Christian community. And many members save hundreds of dollars a month compared to traditional health insurance. And that margin gives you breathing room when you're working the baby steps and trying to steward your money well. And right now, CHM is offering new members a 50% credit towards their first month of membership. Get [e-mail] budget and use promo code RAMSEY that CH Ministries ministries.org budget and promo code Ramsey. All right, let's go to Colin in Orlando. Hi, Colin. Welcome to the show.

[Caller]

Hey, thanks for joining.

Taking my call.

[Rachel Cruze]

Absolutely. How can we help today?

[Caller]

So I'm 22 and a year and a half ago, I was given around $40,000 in a lump sum. Since then, I've made some pretty bad decisions when it came to changing car to car. And I also had a roommate dispute. And now I'm only left with about $11,000 invested up into stocks. My main question is because now I have a truck payment that's around $1,200 a month. Dude, $76,000. I'm upside down. $16,000.

[Rachel Cruze]

It's a $76,000 truck.

[Caller]

Yes. Ridiculous.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay.

[Caller]

And I don't make enough money to pay it. And I'm being kicked out of my house. So I'm about to be moving and paying rent at a new place. And I'm worried this truck payment is going to crush me. I'll be able to afford my bills, but only being able to save like anywhere, five to $800 a month. And I'm just wondering what's the smartest way to fix it? This.

[Rachel Cruze]

Why are you being kicked out?

[Caller]

You know, I got out of the military a little early after a little mental health, went through some traumatic events, and it's just been hard for my family. And, you know, I was going to school and I moved out a few times and I'm not in school anymore. So it's just been a conflict with my parents. So I'm having to relocate from Florida to Texas.

[Rachel Cruze]

Oh, wow. Gosh. I'm sorry. Colin, how old old are you?

[Caller]

22.

[Rachel Cruze]

Wow.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Are you. Are, Are you interested in getting the help that you need?

[Caller]

Absolutely.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay. Will you make it? Forget the money for a second, Forget the truck for a second. Will you make that a top commitment when you get to Texas?

[Caller]

Yes. Yes, sir. Absolutely. And I, that's the reason I reached out is because a lot of the car I flipped, I believe it was three different cars into the truck. I'm in now in a span of a year due to mental health effects, and that's no excuse. And I've gone on top that through the VA and I'm on medication. And I'm just ready to fix this because I'm proud of you. I'm proud to do this.

Yeah.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay. Can you metabolize? And I'm saying this with a smile on my face. Okay. So if you were here, you'd. You'd hear what I'm saying. You'd see what I'm saying. Okay. Are you able to metabolize a what I would call a $40,000 stupid tax?

[Caller]

Yep.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay, so if. Would we draw that up again? No. Would we run it back differently? Yep. But we can't do either of those things. And so the reality is here we. We are.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah.

[Dr. John Deloney]

I would sell that st. Rachel, tell me if I'm wrong. I would sell that stock and I'd go take out a $5,000 loan from a credit union. I would sell that truck or maybe a $7,000 loan from a credit union. I would take that stock, put the 11 grand towards it, get this truck sold, pay the difference, and then buy a $2,000 1988 Corolla with 400,000 miles on it that's still driving. And that would be my car for a season while I got. Well and got my feet back under me.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yep. That's exactly what I would do. Which would be about a $7,000 loan and a crappy car versus a nice truck that is worth $76,000. And I'm underwater because I've been rolling negative equity into other cars, into this thing. So it's a much more peaceful place to be. And then you just got to work your way out of that seven grand. And I would make an aggressive goal call, and I would say, hey, every month I'm going to put 1500 bucks, I'm going to put a thousand bucks, and in five to seven months, I'm going to be completely debt free and getting some traction like that. Colin, I think it's going to be really good for you. It sounds like there's been a lot of setbacks and you've made decisions with money that weren't great. Right. The $40,000 that's gone, the truck, the. I mean, all of it. And so to have some really good wins, I think that's going to feel really good for you. I think you need a little bit of confidence. You're young. You've. You've been through a lot lot already. From 18 to 22. And so I think to get you on a new path, get those kind of wheels turning in the more positive direction is going to be big. But these are some big things we're asking you to do. I mean, you're selling a nice truck, you're going to be driving a crappy car. You got to go down to a credit union, you know, talk to the president there and just say, hey, here's the deal. What can I do? I mean, yeah, there's some work involved in doing it, but I think your situation is going to feel so much different in 30 to 40 days.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Here's what. Here's what I want your number one goal to be okay. I want to reestablish trust again with Colin. Colin's a guy that does the next right thing. He takes his meds. Even when he feels good, he takes them. He goes out for a run in the morning, he gets out of bed and goes to his first job. And then he comes home and he has a sandwich that he makes. He didn't go out to eat. And then he goes to a second job and he went to the bank and put on his nicest clothes that he pressed and he shook hands. And he is going to get this thing paid off. And in 40 days, you're going to start feeling a little bit taller. In six months, when you're done with all this debt, you're going to be standing 8ft tall because you'll have. You'll begin to reestablish. Colin is a man that I trust. I trust myself. And then I can begin to head out into the world and do the great things that you're calling called to do.

[Caller]

Yeah, that's. That's honestly probably what I'm going to do. Thank you. And I just needed to hear the reassurance because I thought about doing it already, but my family, you know, obviously has their own opinions and I've already switched vehicles so much, it's hard for them to look at me and take it seriously. To just go sell another vehicle and buy a new one, which is fair

[Rachel Cruze]

to them because the pattern that was. Yeah, that was set. Was different.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And the only thing you could talk all day long, the only thing you can do is go make a different decision next. That's it.

[Rachel Cruze]

Great job, Colin. We're cheering you on, man.

[Dr. John Deloney]

We believe in you, brother.

[Rachel Cruze]

For sure. All right, let's go to Logan in Columbus, Ohio. Hi, Logan.

[Caller]

Hi, Rachel. Hi, John. How you guys doing?

[Rachel Cruze]

We're doing great. How can we help?

[Caller]

Good.

I have a little bit of a relationship question. My wife and I are in baby step two. We've got our thousand dollars saved up and we're working on paying off $75,000 of consumer debt. My wife wants to help contribute income wise. She's a stay at home mom with her two Littles and she was thinking of things that she could do while also being home with the Littles and she wants to start like a, like a embroidery type business like selling stuff on Etsy and stuff online.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah.

[Caller]

But she needs a little bit of money to kind of get everything started like some like the sewing machine and stuff. I don't really know the details but what I do. My opinion was let's focus on paying off the debt and then we could start something new before we add something in all of this. I just kind of started the.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. Has she ever done it before?

[Caller]

No. Okay. Not really.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah, don't do this.

[Rachel Cruze]

I'm probably more on your, on your side. If she's done it before and she's really good at it and she has a track record or a history of it and you're like hey, we got to put a couple hundred bucks into a used machine. But she, she can make two to three grand a month and it's pretty guaranteed then I'd say all day, all day do that. But if she's never done it before, what scares me is you get into this and I love her gumption though. The fact that she's like, hey, I can do something but she's gonna. There's a good chance you get into this cause she's never done it before and she's, you know, you guys have two or three kids and she's doing that. She does really well for the first month or two and then it starts getting behind and then the motivation kind of goes away and the reality sets in because there's not been a pattern established and her doing this type of business.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So yeah, the two close friends of mine that are real successful in this moment are stay at home moms who have their own kids who keep a couple of other kids and they make great money doing that and it goes into the rhythm of their life and it doesn't cost a lot of capital outlay. You don't have to go buy. Cuz she's not going to want to buy a used machine, is she? She's going to go buy a real nice one and all the equipment and all the threads and all the stuff.

[Caller]

Yeah, yeah. I mean it's only like $1,000 ish to get started. So, like, I know in the grand scheme of things, it's not that big of a deal, but when you owe

[Dr. John Deloney]

$76,000, it's a huge deal.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. And because she's never done it before, that's my thing. If she's had a history of this and she already had an Etsy shop a few years, you know what I mean? If she's done it, then I'd be like, that's one thing. But starting something just completely new that has that kind of investment right now, now the longevity is what I worry about.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Making the craft is one thing. You have to photograph it just right. You have to upload it, you have to ship it, you have to like it. It's a lot more than just, I can make doilies or I can make bandanas or whatever she wants to do. You get what I'm saying?

[Caller]

Yeah.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. So if you guys could find something that's way cheaper and you guys come to like a couple hundred bucks and she wants to try it, you know, I would probably be okay with that. I just wouldn't buy anything new. And I would. I would have it with a very open hand, but I would. I wouldn't spend, probably. I mean, I don't know how much this machines cost. I'm just throwing out there, but from the. From the math of it all, I probably wouldn't spend more than 500 bucks on something new.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Max. Max.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes. During all of it. So I don't know if that's helpful, Logan, but I so appreciate her idea. I would just find something that. That she could do to contribute that doesn't cost. That doesn't cost that much. Right. That much of an initial investment, Buying or selling your home is a really big deal. And with the all. All the clickbait headlines that are out there, and there's so much conflicting data, it's hard to know what is really happening in the housing market. So we're here to make the latest trends easy to understand. So median home prices went up a little bit to $403,000 last month, which is typical as we head into the busy spring season. And mortgage rates dipped a little bit to 5.43%, down from 6.16% that we saw last February, giving home buyers some breathing room. But since rates are still unpredictable, the best time to buy is always when you are financially ready. Not what the market is doing, not trying to chase an interest rate, but when you are financially ready, that is when you need to buy a home. So if you want to Learn more about the housing market trends and get some free tools to help you when you are buying or selling your home with confidence. Go to ramseysolutions.com market or click the link in the show notes if you're listening on podcast or YouTube. All right, let's head to Karen in St. Louis. Hi, Karen. Welcome to the show.

[Caller]

Hi.

I always apologize for my name.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Oh, goodness gracious.

[Caller]

That is.

[Rachel Cruze]

That's. I have an Aunt Karen.

[Dr. John Deloney]

My name is Joe. I have an Aunt Karen. My name's John after a toilet. You're fine.

[Rachel Cruze]

That's a tough name to have, is Dave's Karen. We do not judge. We do not see you as stereotypical Karen.

[Dr. John Deloney]

At least it's not Rachel.

[Rachel Cruze]

We are. We are happy you called in. How can we help?

[Caller]

So I am a recently divorced, 58 year old nurse working full time. I make about $90,000 a year.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay.

[Caller]

I have just finished baby step two.

Yeah.

[Rachel Cruze]

Thank you.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Congratulations.

[Caller]

And I'm now working on my fully funded emergency fund.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay.

[Caller]

I have about $230,000 in my retirement.

Retirement.

And I'm currently a renter. And my question is, should a mortgage or a house even be in my consideration for the future because my income is not going to really change in

the next much in the next 10 years or should I just dump everything

I can into my investments for retirement?

[Dr. John Deloney]

So I just. I'll let Rachel answer the house question. I just put your current numbers in the Ramsey investment calculator. Okay. I put your age at 58. And since you're a nurse now, you might say no, But I put. I put 70. Okay. That you would work till 70 and that you currently have 230 grand in investments. And I put that you would contribute a thousand bucks a month. If you contributed a thousand dollars.

[Caller]

Yeah.

[Dr. John Deloney]

You would have $1,036,000 when you turn. Turn 70.

[Caller]

Okay.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Does that make you breathe a little easier?

[Caller]

Totally. Totally.

And the caveat in my financial future is my parents, who are in their mid-80s, my inheritance will pay fully for a home.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Or it would.

[Caller]

Should I.

[Dr. John Deloney]

It would go into your retirement or

[Caller]

it would fund my retirement.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Caller]

So I'm just trying to figure out what the best direction is to even

consider a home or just retirement.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes. So I would consider a home because that housing line item in your budget is going to be the most expensive and it will continue to go up. Rent will. And so having a home is going to be. Yeah, it's going to be important. But your home, Karen, it may just be like a condo Right. It doesn't.

[Caller]

I mean, yeah, I'm fine with that. I'm totally fine with that.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes.

[Caller]

Okay.

[Rachel Cruze]

How do you. Have you looked at all prices in your area and what that would be like a one bedroom somewhere.

[Caller]

They run probably about 200 to 250.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay, perfect. So what I would do is I would fund 15% into retirement regardless, and that probably comes out to that thousand bucks a month. Ish. So I would, I would stay consistent with that, Karen. And then I would make my only goal to be to save up. Yeah. For a down payment and get into something and then your next goal would be to pay it off. And then when your inheritance comes, whenever that is, that's just the bonus money on top. Right. To help pay off the house and fund retirement. Or maybe your parents live, I don't know, another 15 years and they're in their late 90s and you've, you know, maybe already taken a big chunk of the house and then you get this inheritance and most of it goes into retirement at that point. But those would be my goals. It'd be 15% into retail retirement and then I would save for a down payment and get into something. But as cheap, again, as cheap as possible. As inexpensive as possible because we want it paid off. I want a goal would be to have that paid off, that property when you go into retirement at 70, which I, which you easily can do. People that do the baby steps, millionaires plan, they're paying off their homes in 7ish years on average. So I think you can with a $90,000 salary if you live really tightly. I think that there is a. Yeah, there's a good chance you can have this paid off in seven, eight years. And I think that's very doable for you for a $200,000 mortgage.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Karen, can we talk real, can we get real dark for like 30 seconds?

[Caller]

Sure.

[Dr. John Deloney]

How much, how much inheritance? If you had to guess a number, what do you think that number is going to be?

[Caller]

350.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay, so if it was, you were

[Caller]

going to say very open conversations with my parents.

[Dr. John Deloney]

No. That's awesome. So if you were going to tell me, it actually confirms what I want to just caution you about. Okay, if you were going to say 3.5 million or 35 million. Not worried about it. But if they're saying I'm going to give you $350,000. Do you have siblings too?

[Caller]

Well, yeah, but they'll get that amount also.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay, so let's say your parents are projecting to have a million dollars when they pass away and they're going to give you 350, your brother 350 and your sister 350.

[Caller]

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

This is. I'm going to get dark for two seconds. And I'm doing this for a reason. Okay. If one of them has a six month stay in ICU because they have congestive heart failure, that goes into something. That goes into something. You can burn through some of that cash in a wild way.

[Caller]

I agree.

And that's where I know it's not a guarantee.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay, so what. Yeah. My cost question is create a life for yourself. That if this money never comes through, you're all good.

[Caller]

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And if it does, amazing.

[Caller]

Right. Right.

I didn't want to depend on it, but it. A little caveat.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yes.

[Caller]

And I just kind of wanted to throw it out there, but I wanted to make the right decisions for my finances. Not perfect. Not dependent on that.

[Dr. John Deloney]

You are in rare air. Most people, honestly, before I started working on the show, would have been me too. Would have seen, oh, I can afford a $250,000 house. Plus I'm going to get this 350. I'm going to buy a $600,000 house.

[Caller]

No.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And then it'll just get paid off later. And later might be, hey, your inheritance is 100 grand because we had to spend it on this and this and retirement care and a, in a, in a facility and whatever. And so. Yes. You are so wise. So wise.

[Caller]

Okay. So that's good to know because my thinking was going just dump everything into

retirement and don't worry about a house. But you've kind of.

[Rachel Cruze]

I would have something long term. Yep. That you own and that no one can take from you. It's paid off and there's no rent you're having to chase as it continues to go up year after year. So yeah. Owning something is big. And you know, John did some of that math on the investment calculator, but I think that, that that is a place that you, you've done such a great job, Karen. I mean, you have $230,000. And what's wild is that doubles every seven years when you actually look at the math. So that would be 400, you know, and yeah, after I, I did the math, it was after 14 years, it's going to be like 932,000 if you don't touch it.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And that's if you don't put another penny in there.

[Rachel Cruze]

And that. Yeah. And that's if you, yeah. Don't put another penny in. So there you're so it's gonna. Yeah, you're doing really great on that end. So I don't want you to feel this urgency of. I mean we still want to contribute because we want you to have a great retirement that you can go and live your dreams. But it's not like you don't have anything right now. We get a lot of people that call up and they literally are starting. Yeah. They have Nothing and they're 58 years old. So. So you're. I want to just assure you you're doing a great job on that end. I would still fund it some after you get that three to six months of expenses. But.

[Caller]

Right.

[Rachel Cruze]

I would be. Yep. I would be looking for something. And if you can put 20% down, Karen, like if you're able to, to take your expenses and figure out a way to rent for a few more more years and have a 20 down payment, like that's awesome. Or if you want to get into something. Yep. Or if you want to get into something at five, if you find a great deal and it's a good location and everything you want and it makes sense. But yeah, our parameters with buying a home is that you are debt free. You have that fully funded emergency fund, at least a 5% down payment and then your mortgage payment is no more than 25% of your take home pay on a 15 year fixed rate. So that's kind of our Ramsey formula. And I think you're gonna be able to do that with 90,000. And the great thing about nursing too is if there's a season, maybe a year or so that you want to do some extra overtime like knock that house out. Yes. You're able to really do that, Karen. So I know you, I think you said newly newly single or newly divorced. So you're starting a new chapter in your life, Karen. Really proud of you. Thanks for the call. Welcome back to the Ramsey show and the Fair Winds Credit Union Studio. I'm Rachel Cruze with Dr. John DeLoney and we are taking your calls about life and money. So give us a call at 888-825-5225. All right, let's go to Atlanta and we have Dan on the line. Hi Dan, Rachel.

[Caller]

Hey, thanks for having me. How are you?

[Rachel Cruze]

Absolutely, we're doing great. How are you doing?

[Caller]

I'm doing well, thanks for asking.

[Rachel Cruze]

Awesome. How can we help today?

[Caller]

So I am coming to you guys as a concerned brother son. So I'm the oldest of three brothers. We're all in our third 30s. My specifically my youngest brother who just turned 30. He has never financially been independent from my parents. And so being the baby, that might have something to do with it, but just ever since he's been in college and have graduated and is now married, my parents have always financially provided for him, even in the life, marriage into his 30s and et cetera. About three years ago, my dad sold his company that he worked really, really hard to build. Built it over about 25 years, sold it, made some good money. And naturally since that happened, the asks for money or for financial help from my brothers, specifically my youngest, have drastically increased. I. I have expressed my concerns to my parents that they are getting taken advantage of. They have heard those, don't necessarily acknowledge those. My dad is an incredibly generous person and actually would call himself a Dave Ramsey disciple, but he doesn't really, I don't think, see the fact that he's getting taken advantage of. For a little more context, my wife and his brother are pregnant and they are expecting this year. And I just choose to believe that they wouldn't necessarily be planning to expand their family unless they had a financial backer in the form of my parents. And so I just see it coming from a mile away. And my parents don't necessarily see it that way. I help my parents understand that what's really happening, happening.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Here's the thing. I don't think you're mad at your brother.

[Caller]

Not necessarily, no. I know. I would say mad.

[Dr. John Deloney]

How? How? Well, the problem here is not your brother. Yes, if he was on the call, I would tell him to grow up and be an adult.

[Rachel Cruze]

It's your parents.

[Dr. John Deloney]

It's your parents, dude. And the, the part that you have to like, like, man, I overuse this word, I think, but you have to metabolize is you told your dad what you think and he, through his actions, said, I don't care. I'm a grown man. This is my money and I get to do what I want with it.

[Caller]

And it is true. I mean, they do get to do with their money as they please, which I completely respect. I just.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Why do you think they're getting taken advantage of? They sound like they're sound mind. They're smart people, they're generous people. Why do you think they're getting ripped off?

[Caller]

I just, I don't. I mean, look, the help that he's providing is not like setting my parents back or anything necessarily, but I think that he might struggle a little bit with the idea of like, well, do I take, you know, my kids off the payroll or do I go figure it out.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Why, why are you, why are you inventing stories that might be in his head and then trying to judge him for those stories?

[Caller]

I don't, I don't want to say I'm judging. I just. So here's where I'm at. I am very personal protective of what my parents.

[Rachel Cruze]

I think you're annoyed, Dan, that you've worked hard, you're supporting yourself. So is your brother, your middle brother. And then your younger brother is kind of mooching off your parents and you're annoyed by it. That frustrates you. It's annoying to you. You don't like it. Right.

[Caller]

That is fair. That is okay.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And you're annoyed. You're mad at your dad.

[Rachel Cruze]

You can't change your parents.

[Caller]

Yes.

[Rachel Cruze]

Like it's your parents decision.

[Dr. John Deloney]

You can't change your brother.

[Rachel Cruze]

And they're obviously smart people. They're choosing to do this. And so that may hurt you. That, that, that may be frustrating. Golly. That he gets this hand out and me and my wife aren't getting anything. Mom and dad aren't reaching out to us and you know, I mean it's not, it doesn't feel fair. Whatever the feelings are. I think those are all your feelings. But you're not going to be able to to change what they're doing. It's you know what I mean? In a way it's none of your business. I mean kind of.

[Caller]

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And you find yourself in a position where you can't change the outcome.

[Rachel Cruze]

It's so frustrating.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Then yes. A, it's frustrating. It's maddening.

[Dave Ramsey]

Dude.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And we're both on your side here.

[Caller]

Get that for sure.

[Dr. John Deloney]

The but to continue to dwell on it to create. I think he's doing it because of this and I can't believe he's probably. It's a choice for you to be miserable in your own skin.

[Caller]

And so, so what Good.

[Dr. John Deloney]

I, I, I literally and I, and I don't say this lightly. I would let it go because you've put, you've made your position known. Your little brother is not of character to that he wants to build up his own home on his own. He wants to keep asking for dad for money. And your dad is of the opinion that he can do want with his money include fund his youngest son's life. And so I've made my position known. I'm going to choose to not let that misery poison my household. Me and my wife's relationship, our kids lives. We're going to choose joy and happiness in our life which Means I'm out. I'm out of Yalls fights. I'm out of your money drama. I'm out of all that stuff and moving myself. I'm going to make peace with the life I have chosen to create for me and my spouse.

[Caller]

Mm.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Because any other choice is a choice to be miserable because you can't control any of the other stuff you want to control.

[Caller]

So I don't think I'd say I'm miserable. I think frustrated is definitely, definitely the accurate word.

[Rachel Cruze]

We are calling a show to talk about it, though, Dan.

[Caller]

Well, so here's John to your point. Like, yes, I have made my. My thoughts known, and I've expressed these to my parents, and I've made the decision, look, I'm not going to bring it up again. Right. So I'm not necessarily, necessarily, like, pushing the envelope or trying to continually, like, rehash it, but it is. It is frustrating. So my dad was a guy who taught me to just work for everything that I have and to grind it out and to hustle, and that's how I sort of, like, molded my life.

[Dr. John Deloney]

I know, but you're. You're setting yourself up in a. In a. In a lifeguard tower, looking down on your brother and your dad, and you're asking, why aren't y' all up here with me? And what I want to tell you is just climb off the lifeguard tower and get on with your life. Right? Because even then, you. You loop back to, I've done these things. My dad taught me this stuff. I built my life this way, and my son. I mean, my brother hasn't. And it's like, you're right, and all you're left with is your frustration, but nothing's going to change. You get what I'm saying?

[Caller]

I do. I do. And I don't disagree. I mean, there's nothing I can do. Do to.

[Rachel Cruze]

So how can we help, Dan? What do you need from us?

[Caller]

Well, I still. I just still go back to the fact that my. And, look, maybe there isn't an answer. Maybe I just have to let it, you know, let things take their course. But my parents are essentially right now the giving tree. And at some point, they're just. They're gonna get picked and picked and picked, and maybe they got to figure it out.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yes.

[Caller]

Yes, they do, but they're. So your advice is to just let. Let that happen.

Let it happen.

[Rachel Cruze]

You can't do anything different.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Give me an alternative.

[Rachel Cruze]

Here's the big.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Are you going to go file a competency claim against your parents and take over. Like, right, so what are you.

[Caller]

You can't do anything.

[Rachel Cruze]

Can I tell you, after thousands of dollars of therapy through my life, coming to the realization that you can't change people. And I used to really believe in my head if I say this sentence in this conversation with this person this way, they're going to get.

[Caller]

Get it.

[Rachel Cruze]

Like, the light bulb's gonna, they're gonna see it if I, oh, I have a great way to present it. And they're. They're gonna get it.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yes.

[Rachel Cruze]

They don't get it.

[Dr. John Deloney]

You can just control. You.

[Rachel Cruze]

You can say it over and over and over and over and over and over and over. And they may not change.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So at Christmas when y' all all go out to dinner, you get a separate tab for you and your wife and say, I'm not gonna take dad's money. That that's what you can control. Nothing else at that table.

[Rachel Cruze]

When I talk to people on The Ramsey Show, 90% of the problems I hear come down to one thing. Not having a plan. They're not living on a budget. They have no idea where their money's going. Money is just happening to them instead of them happening to their money. And guys, that is so normal. But it doesn't have to be normal for you. And that's why I want you to go download our EveryDollar budget app. EveryDollar not only helps you tell your money where to go with a budget, it also builds a plan to free up extra money so you can pay debt off faster and start building wealth. And the best part, your plan is completely personalized to your life. It's the same advice that you would get if you called the show. And it's right in your pocket. So don't keep living normal. Go download the EveryDollar app, answer a few questions and get your plan. Today. Our question of the day is brought to you by why Refi? If private student loan default has knocked you off track, this is how you reset. Why refi works with borrowers other lenders won't. And helping you refinance defaulted private student loans with a low fixed rate so that you can get back on the plan and move forward. So visit y refi.com Ramsey that's the letter y r e f y.com Ramsey may not be available in in all states.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Our today's question comes from Rachel in Louisiana.

[Rachel Cruze]

Hey, Rachel.

[Dr. John Deloney]

This is probably going to be a doozy.

[Rachel Cruze]

I can't wait.

[Dr. John Deloney]

My husband and I are on are on baby step three. We currently have $15,000 saved and our monthly expenses average around six grand. Our monthly take home pay is 10,000. I recently got a promotion that will come with new responsibilities and workloads to balance. I would like to hire a house cleaner to free up more time for us as a family. My husband feels like it will cost too much and that we'll neglect our parental responsibilities. What? At what point in the baby steps can we reasonably afford to hire a house cleaner? Oh man. I got all kinds of feelings about this.

[Rachel Cruze]

Neglect our parental per. That's funny. Responsibilities. I'm like.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah. I, I think what it sounds like to me, Rachel from the Louisiana is that your husband is volunteering to take on the new cleaning. House cleaning. Because he believes it's too expensive. Fair. So. But you've taken on this new job with new responsibilities and workloads. And since he doesn't want to hire some support and help, then he sounds like he's volunteering to do it all. What a great husband.

[Rachel Cruze]

Rachel's husband. So self. Yeah.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So selfless.

[Rachel Cruze]

So nice. So nice of him.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Rachel, what would your math answer be? I mean not even math. What's your answer?

[Rachel Cruze]

I know. Well, I was gonna say, I mean a three month emergency fund basically would be 18,000. They have $15,000 saved. I would get to 18,000. Then I'd hire a house cleaner once a month, every other week. I don't know. So find someone, come in and. Yeah. I mean put that part of your budget, make that part of your lifestyle. And if it doesn't work, if you really can't afford it because that's going to take away from other things, then that's definitely a opportunity cost conversation you guys have to have like, okay, right now we just can't do that. That's fine if it doesn't work, but if you can make the math work and it gives you some sanity. I'm all about delegating things that you can delegate.

[Caller]

Yeah.

[Rachel Cruze]

When. Especially when you're past baby step three.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And I have to say I was against that. Like the thought of hiring somebody to mow my lawn, I didn't realize how deep that was.

[Rachel Cruze]

That's how Winsome was.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Poor. You are no longer a man. Right. And who is my son gonna think I am? Right.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And I was, I was wrong on that. And so I chose other responsibilities that take me out of my house. And so I've, I've, I, I actually see this opposite it. I was hiding with the, on the mower from Per. From what this guy is saying. Parental Responsibilities. I would mow for hours and hours and hours. And I was avoiding being with my kids, with my wife. And so I made a choice. I'm gonna outsource this so that I can do this stuff right.

[Rachel Cruze]

That's right. Y.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And we happen to be in a season where we could afford to do that, right?

[Caller]

Yep. I love it.

[Dr. John Deloney]

But man, you know, Arthur Brooks talks

[Rachel Cruze]

about that there's five things you can do with money and four will bring happiness. One will not. The one that will not. Spoiler alert. Is just buy stuff that doesn't just buy stuff. It doesn't make you long term. Yeah. Give you long term joy giving does savings does buying experiences with people you love. And the other thing was using money to buy back your time.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Buy back time.

[Rachel Cruze]

And actually using your time, not like scrolling Instagram, but actually using it in a meaningful way. So that's actually a way to find a level of joy with your money is to buy back time.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And I want to call this out. Rachel, you and I have taught this from stage for years now at our money marriage retreat. If one of you in your marriage, if y' all are both workers and both working outside the home and one of you gets a promotion and it's a new responsibilities, new workload loads, I want to challenge you both to consider that you now have a new marriage. Because your old marriage was built on this routine, this dollar amount, this time, this space. And now things are different. And what I often see happen here is he wants the things to just quote, unquote, get back to the way they were. And they're not going to because she has a new job, new responsibilities, and yet the kids still need food and the house still needs to be cleaned, et cetera. And so let's go treat this for what it is, is the marriage and we had doesn't exist anymore. Now we got a new one with new dynamics, new jobs, new responsibilities. And let's reco create this thing. Let's reimagine who's doing what, what needs to get done. How do we want this house to feel when we get home every day? And let's build that from the floor up. That can be a fun, like really adventurous, exciting, joy filled time, an intimate time together. How do we want this place to feel? Not well. We used to. It's going to be used. Used to you never anymore, man. That's a way to just burn the whole thing down all the way to ash.

[Rachel Cruze]

Create a new. A new marriage. I love it. All right, let's go to Lindsay in San Diego. Hey, Lindsay, welcome to the show.

[Caller]

Hi. Thanks, guys. So I've always been the most frugal person my whole life and always invested. And even though no matter how much I have, like, it's still hard for me. Like I every penny, I'm still like looking at when I'm spending it, even though I don't, I don't have to, but basically I have so much and I only spend it on like vacations, travel. And so I was wondering, like, if I want to go on a trip, like with girlfriends, I should, I think,

[Rachel Cruze]

see if I can cover them or.

[Caller]

But then everyone's like, nobody knows I have much money because I don't use it or anything.

[Dr. John Deloney]

How much is this?

[Caller]

Over 14 million.

[Dr. John Deloney]

14 million?

[Caller]

14? Yeah.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Didn't see that coming.

[Rachel Cruze]

Well done, Lindsay.

[Caller]

Yeah.

[Rachel Cruze]

You want me and John to come on a trip?

[Dr. John Deloney]

You could go anywhere. With you.

[Rachel Cruze]

With you. Lindsay, what do you do for a job? How did you, how did you accumulate that much?

[Caller]

I've always invested in everything in a sock neck fund. Like.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. What do you do for a living? What was your, your income? I mean, I'm sorry, what? Yeah, just what you do for a

[Caller]

living, it doesn't matter what it is. But now I just trade options with my money. So it make a lot. I make too much. But. And for my whole life, like ever since I was 20, so it's been.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay.

[Caller]

How old are you of investing? 54.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. Are you married?

[Caller]

Not anymore. Okay.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, yeah. Kids?

[Caller]

They're adults. Yeah, they're adults.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. Okay. So your questions. Question is, you want to go on a girls trip and pay for your friends?

[Caller]

So they don't usually, like, have money, you know, they don't. They probably have money problems. Nobody, you know, so I don't know if it's awkward and weird and if they kind of don't want that and if it makes things, you know, weird.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, totally. Totally, absolutely. If your knee jerk reaction, knowing your friends well, how do you think they would react if you're like, hey, I have a bucket list trip I want to take and I want my people with me, and I kind of just want to treat everyone. Would that make it weird for your friends? You know, your friends well enough. Is that, is that awkward for them? Would they be offended? Would they be excited? How do you think they would respond?

[Caller]

I don't know. One might, you know, one might be like, oh, that's okay. You know, they just might feel awkward. But I think in general, I'm sure they would like it but it's just weird because, like, I mean, they have no idea, you know, like.

[Rachel Cruze]

And they don't have to know. They don't have to know all that.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Here, here's. Here's the. Here's the path. Here's the thing I want you to think through. Would you rather, when you're 75, sitting on a rocking chair in front of your house, would you rather have had a bunch of memories with your friends, going to do some wild and crazy stuff, or would you like to have an account on your computer that has big numbers in it?

[Caller]

I. I mean, that's why I'm saying if I. Yeah, that's why I do. Would want to.

[Rachel Cruze]

But like I said, I don't know

[Caller]

if it's just awkward.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Here's. Here's. Here's how I get past awkward in with my friends. My life has changed. Here's how I get past it with mine. You can take this or leave it. Okay. I will tell my friends, hey, I want to go do this thing. And I had a crazy month last month. I got you. And that's it.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, Lindsay. So I saw this on Instagram. Sarah Blakeley.

[Dr. John Deloney]

This ought.

[Rachel Cruze]

Sarah Blakeley, who. Who's the founder. Founder of Spanx. Okay. Bill, I think she's a. Bill, I think she's a billion. I think she sold it for over a billion. Like, so She's. She's doing great. Her. Every birthday. Every birthday. She. I'm sure she has a jet or rents one, I don't know. But she takes 12 of her best friends, Most of them are childhood friends every year. And she doesn't tell them where they're going. She's just like, pack warm clothes, pack for cold. Bring a passport. Don't bring a passport. She just gives them some clues, and they all board this jet and she just takes them somewhere every year.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah.

[Rachel Cruze]

I was like, oh, my gosh, Lindsay, I think you should do that.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yes. Go have fun and go on as many adventures as you can.

[Caller]

Kidding.

[Rachel Cruze]

Like, oh, my gosh. Go enjoy life, Lindsay.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Buy the tickets and bring your friends.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes.

[Dave Ramsey]

All right, let's cut to the chase. It's easy to get discouraged about crazy house prices and interest. Interest rates. But when you have the right real estate agent to help you buy and sell the right way, you'll have confidence to make smart decisions. Ramsey trusted agents aren't just experts who guide you through buying or selling. They're people you can trust to have your back from the first call to closing day. Find a Ramsey trusted agent near you at ramseysolutions.com agent. That's ramseysolutions.com/leisure.

[Rachel Cruze]

One of the best things that you can do for your finances is to have a really good tax pro in your corner that you can trust, because they're going to help advise you on the best moves to make in your situation or for your small business, especially if you have had big life changes this year. So go to ramseysolutions.com taxpro to find CPAs and enrolled agents that are vetted by the Ramsey team. All right, let's head to Porter in Midland, Texas. Hi, Porter. Welcome to the show.

[Caller]

What's going on?

[Dr. John Deloney]

How are y'?

[Caller]

All?

[Rachel Cruze]

Hey, we're doing great. How can we help?

[Caller]

So I just, at the beginning of the year, got a raise. Not for a huge amount, but just enough to make a difference. And I recently, this week, just got a email saying that the raise amount was incorrectly, like, inputted into our, like, payroll program. And so there's actually there was an error. And they. It's not supposed to be as high as it currently is. And so they're asking me to just sign the document saying, hey, I approve that decrease and moving forward, this is what the rate will be.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Do you have to pay it back?

[Caller]

I do not.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay.

[Rachel Cruze]

Oh, that's nice.

[Dr. John Deloney]

This exact thing happened to me, and I actually had to pay it back.

[Caller]

It was on.

[Dr. John Deloney]

It was on a commission I had to pay back.

[Rachel Cruze]

And I was gonna say most companies,

[Dr. John Deloney]

I hated it, but it was what it was.

[Rachel Cruze]

Right back pay you? Yeah.

[Caller]

Yeah. Okay. And that's kind of where most of my, I guess, question was stemming towards, because this is the first time this has happened to me. So I didn't know on the email that, like, it was our payroll person to hire up and then a boss from another branch. And my. My boss was not included in the email, and so I didn't know I would go.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Right. Have you talked to your supervisor?

[Caller]

I have not. And that's kind of where I was. Like, it was such a minor amount. I didn't know if it was worth. Worth splitting hairs over if I should just kind of accept it for what it is.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. How much is it compared to your, like, what are we talking?

[Caller]

It's just 50 cents an hour less. So it's not. Like I said, it's not.

[Rachel Cruze]

What did it end up?

[Caller]

But.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. Yeah, Yeah, I probably.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah, yeah. It stinks. And I. I always would run this stuff by my supervisor just to make sure there's not end arounds happening. You don't know what meetings they have all been in that you weren't a part of. And for sure I would always get communications.

[Caller]

Great.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Keep my supervisor in the loop. But I. This. I don't know, this happened to me and it was a good faith. Whoopsie.

[Caller]

Right?

[Dr. John Deloney]

It was a good faith. Didn't mean for this to happen. And it cost me money, every check for several checks for me to catch up. And it stinks. And it was what it was. And then I. I asked for some confirmation. This won't happen again. I got it. And we're same team, so it's all good.

[Caller]

Yes, sir. That makes sense. Cool.

Yep.

[Rachel Cruze]

Awesome. Thanks for the question, Porter. Let's go to Alyssa in Toronto. Hi, Alyssa. Welcome to the show.

[Caller]

Hi, guys. Thanks. So I'm about to get about 280,000 Canadian. 200,000 US in inheritance because my mom passed away unexpectedly, and so sorry, Alyssa. Thank you. And I'm just trying to figure out, like, what to do first.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. So, okay, what's your financial situation? Do you have. Do you have consumer debt?

[Caller]

I do. So we have about 90,000 in vehicle debt, about 45,000 in taxes from when my husband worked for himself.

[Rachel Cruze]

$45,000 in back taxes.

[Caller]

Yes. And then about $15,000 in credit card debt.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay.

[Caller]

Well, the caveat.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah.

[Caller]

This is we're about to move to Florida from here at the end of August.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. Okay.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Can I say what I would do?

[Rachel Cruze]

I would. What. What's up with the. Well, yeah, I was gonna ask the cars.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Yeah.

[Rachel Cruze]

What's up with the cars?

[Dr. John Deloney]

I. I would have, like, obviously, the first thing you do before you even take a breath is you pay the taxes off and get settled up with the government. Right. And that brings you down to 165. And I. This is me. Okay. Take this for what it is. This isn't like Ramsey Gospel. This is just John. I would have a hard time taking inheritance money from my mom, who'd passed away, and putting that on depreciating assets. Like a car. That's just me. I would want to sell $90,000 worth of vehicles and be a good start. Like, if I. If my. I would imagine my mom sitting across the table from me and saying, hey, how can I best be a steward of this money? I can imagine my mom saying, I'd like you to buy a house, or I want to make sure the kids have college or, like, not get the fanciest car you can buy that will be worth 25 less this time next year. Does that make sense? And that's just me. But that's how I would think about it. I'd sell those cars and put some money away so you can cash flow your trip to Florida or your move to Florida.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, yeah. Because I think that the short answer, Alyssa, is to get out of debt. Use this to get out of debt. That's a beautiful thing for your mom's legacy. But to John's point, what. What you're paying off kind of sucks. $90,000 of cars that you can't afford. And, Alyssa, you guys aren't great with money. Can I just say that out loud?

[Caller]

Oh, I know that.

100%.

[Rachel Cruze]

So here's. So here's my.

[Caller]

It's like a clean slate.

[Rachel Cruze]

I know, but here's my fear. Here's my fear, Alyssa, is that this money goes and wipes out this debt, and nothing has changed. Changed in y'.

[Caller]

All.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And then you'll take a loan out from Florida.

[Rachel Cruze]

From a habits perspective, a behavior perspective, nothing has changed. You have felt zero sacrifice. You have had to do zero hard work in this. You felt nothing. It's kind of just a boom, boom, done. And. And my fear is that this money is gonna pay off this debt, and you guys are gonna get right back to where you are. So I like John's plan, not only because it's cars, and I hate. Hate car debt so much. I think it's so stupid. Not only that, but I think you guys need to have a sacrificial decision within this blessing somewhere so you can feel something emotionally that's going to help stir and push on the good habits that you guys need to create. So I'm curious. We have a little bit of time. So I am curious about these cars. $90,000 worth of cars. What? What? And there are two cars, I'm assuming. What do you owe on each?

[Caller]

So mine is a 21 Wrangler, and we owe about 42,000. And then my husband's is a 22 Gladiator, so also Jeep, and we owe about 50 on that one.

[Rachel Cruze]

Okay. How much you guys make a year?

[Caller]

Anywhere from 150 to 300,000. He's got a base plus commission.

[Rachel Cruze]

Oh, my gosh. Y' all have too much car. Alyssa. Too much car. Way too. Too much for what you guys make.

[Caller]

So, you guys, I'm definitely upside down on my car.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Oh, both of you are? Because they're both probably products. Yeah, y' all are way upside down.

[Rachel Cruze]

So, yeah, I mean, I. I would look to see, hey, what. What could we sell them for? And. Or maybe pick one and do the other. But you guys, you. You. You owe. You own too much car for what you make. Okay. Because it's gonna. It's adding up to close to 100 grand in cars, and you guys are at 150. So we always say it should be no more than half of your annual income. So you're looking at 75, and you guys are over that. So something. Yeah, something's got to change with the car situation. Do you agree or are you, like. I don't think we're going to do

[Caller]

that, honestly, like, the Jeeps are. Are at this point, part of, like, our personality. And, like, 90% of our friends that actually live in the US are. We've met them from the Jeeps, like, going off roading and, like, my Jeep is set up to.

[Dr. John Deloney]

You tell me your. Did you tell me they're part of your personality?

[Caller]

Yeah, that's what I.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Good God almighty. I get a. Listen, listen. I've got friends who love Jeeps, and they go do all this stuff, but to say it's like it's become part of our culture core.

[Rachel Cruze]

I just sell it and go get a $10,000 Jeep Wrangler.

[Caller]

Yes.

[Rachel Cruze]

Make that your personality.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Or get a. Get a Jeep tattoo. Make that your personality. Did you really say, Alyssa, I don't

[Rachel Cruze]

know if we can help. I don't know if we can help. Alyssa, I don't know if we can help. I think we'd be friends, but I don't know if I can help across

[Caller]

the US So I. I get it. I feel it.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Listen, we're both friends with. With George Camel. His Tesla is part of his identity. And that's the problem. That's the problem. Right?

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. Alyssa, I just want. I want this money that you received after something horrific. I know we're joking about it, but for real, to be. To be joking, to be something of a good. Of a good legacy. And you guys are. You make bad decisions with money and bad decisions with identity. So, like, I don't know. I don't know what to do. I would. I would sell. But if I woke up in your shoes, Alyssa, I would use 200,000. I'd pay taxes. I'd pay the credit card debt. I would sell the cars. I would re up what's going inside of me and my consumption of life in cars.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And I would change my personality.

[Rachel Cruze]

No. And I would cash flow, the move to Florida. But if you. I don't think you're going to. But you know what? We could. We could still be friends. If I see you in Florida, I'd still give you a high five, you

[Dr. John Deloney]

know, in the gladiator and give you

[Rachel Cruze]

a little rubber duck. Don't they like trade?

[Dave Ramsey]

Hey, guys, Dave Ramsey here. Every day on this show, we help people work through real money problems and figure out what to do next. Now, you can get that same kind of help anytime with Ask Ramsey, Ask your money question and get answers built on Ramsey principles we use on the show. Whether you're making a decision or just want something explained, Ask Ramsey is here to help. It's fast, simple, and free to use. Go to ramseysolutions.com and try Ask Ramsey today. That's ramseysolutions.com.

[Rachel Cruze]

Our scripture of the day comes from Romans 12. Two, do not be conformed to this world, but be transparent, transformed by the renewing of your minds that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Rob Siltian, I think is how you say it, said people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do. All right, let's go to Kay in Dallas, Texas. Hi, Kay. Welcome to the show.

[Caller]

Hi. Thank you, Rachel. Dr. John, I have a question. I have a senior in high school. He has received an offer to play college sports. And we as his parents think it's a good deal. It would be kind of staying local in our area. But in his mind, he thinks that, you know, going off and playing like for a club sport with the same sport would be better. However, that would incur student loan debt. And we've been pretty frank with, like, if you take this offer, then we could get what you owe pretty much down to a manageable amount without student loans. But you know, your other route, you're going to have to work and do your laundry and all this other stuff. So just wondering, am I missing anything? Am I, you know, what else is there to help him navigate this choice?

[Dr. John Deloney]

The two, it sounds like you're asking two different questions. And so I think the first question would be you and your husband taking your son out. What's the sport?

[Caller]

Lacrosse.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay. And saying it's been our joy, one of our life's big joys, traveling around with you and watching you play lacrosse over the years. And if you're done playing lacrosse competitively, let us know that because I've met with countless college students who felt like they, their parents looked at all the years of travel, sports and Leslie lessons as an investment in college, and they were playing college sports, which is a full time committed job. It's a life. Right. And they were doing it to keep mom and dad happy and it always cratered. And so if you take them out and say if you're done, we will support you and love you. But. But if you are going to play, here's an opportunity for you to do this. And college is expensive. And then the second thing. So that's the first one is why doesn't my son want to play sports at this level for the college etc, have that conversation but lead it with. We're ready to put a period at the end of the sentence if you are. And the second question is, has to come with you and your husband making some really firm decisions on what you will and won't pay for. And then you lead with that.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, I don't. I, I feel uncomfortable k supporting the idea of making him go to college because he has a full right on a sport that he doesn't want to play. I was just talking to and that all they said a ton of research has come out now with college athletes. The amount of depression. Oh, yeah. I mean it doesn't look good. And I'm not saying every college athlete is one of these statistics, but when you look at the majority, it's, it's, it's kind of. It's not great for a college athlete, honestly, and especially if he's not wanting it. So my red flag kind of went up when he's like, mom, Dad, I don't want to do this full time. I mean a club sports grade or like, you know, like intramurals or whatever at some other college. Like that sounds more fun to me. I get that. Now let's figure out how we can make that work financially. So that means you're probably gonna stay in state, you're gonna take in state tuition. There's a good chance you're gonna have to work, maybe get some other scholarships. Like we're gonna have to figure out a way to cash flow another situation. Cause it's not this. It's not as black and white as. You have to go to this school close to us and get a full ride or you're gonna take out all this debt. No, people go through college all the time.

[Dr. John Deloney]

There's a thousand other ways.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes. So many ways that he can go to school still. Deb and Kate, I've never said this publicly.

[Dr. John Deloney]

I'm about to say this for the first time.

[Rachel Cruze]

Oh my gosh. What, what, what an honor I had.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Well, I just, I just want to paint you a picture. I had a hundred percent full ride that I walked away from in August to go to another school for a very small partial scholarship. And that happened to be the place where I met my wife, met all my lifelong friends, got connected, connected with mentors and friends. And it's the reason I'm sitting here right now.

[Caller]

Wow.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And so I want to tell you his life isn't over. I had a hundred percent everything and I walked away at the very last minute because I wanted to go and do something else. And quite honestly, to Rachel's point, I was completely cooked on the idea of this being the next. It's already been four years of my life. It's going to be the next four years of my life. And I just, just my heart wasn't in it.

[Caller]

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And so I think having that big conversation. Here's another piece. Do you, do you and your husband secretly want him to go to school kind of by y' all because you like being around him?

[Caller]

I, well, I just think the, the coaches are like great mentors. They're.

[Dr. John Deloney]

But pretend he's not playing sports. No sports, let's say sports are off the table. Do you kind of want him to go to. I, I, I am stunning myself that as my son is, is heading into the college years, I kind of hope he picks a school next to us

[Caller]

because I like cancer. I mean I do like him. But no, most days I like, you know, we're kind of ready, you know, picking up socks and you know, seeing him come in and out and it's high and by. But you know, I mean, I'm okay with that idea of him going off.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay, so, so be honest about those conversations. But framing this, this as putting all of the weight on to this 18 year old kid, that's when 18 year olds make bad decisions and they can walk into a room and someone's going to hand them 120 grand and say make good choices. And so you and your husband saying, as for our household, our money will only go here, here's the dollar amount we can contribute per month, which means this is what the tuition needs to be. And if you choose to go to this school out of state, we will love you and we can't wait for you to come home. But our money will, won't go there. And then he gets to make grownup choices for as that they unbelievably allow 18 year olds to make.

[Caller]

I know, right? The logical side is just hard.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Do y' all have a debt journey,

[Caller]

sir?

[Dr. John Deloney]

Do y' all have a debt journey where y' all paid off some money?

[Caller]

Yes.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Have y'.

[Dave Ramsey]

All.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Were y' all burdened by student loans too?

[Caller]

Yes, I. I mean, I paid mine off.

Off.

But unfortunately my husband still has them.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Okay. Can I, Can I tell you that leading with that level of vulnerability, these things are still hanging around our family.

[Caller]

Yes.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And maybe it's the reason we haven't gone on big vacations. It's the reason there's been tension in our house. There's a reason your mom and I, or your dad and I have fought over the years because these stupid things are still here. Please, we're asking you, don't go do this.

[Caller]

Yes.

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

So it's leading a vulnerability instead of. Of preaching at him.

[Caller]

Oh, yes. And it's probably a lot of both. But sure, we have kind of backed off the past few weeks just to let him, you know, navigate his own choices, but I just want to make sure we weren't. I mean, you did away an opportunity point.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah, yeah, I get that.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And if he comes back and says, I want to commit the next four years of my life to lacrosse. Amazing. Awesome. And I promise you, if somebody's offering him a full ride, they will not be the only ones.

[Caller]

Right.

[Dr. John Deloney]

Guaranteed.

[Caller]

Okay. Okay.

[Dr. John Deloney]

And so let's find the. Let's find a place that's going to fit for him if he doesn't happen to want to go to that school right next to you. And we can figure all that out. But like we want it to be their choice, but that choice has to be made inside of boundaried. Boundaried framework because this open season for 18 year olds just to decide where they want to move across the country and quote unquote, live their life. That's so much pressure on an 18 year old.

[Caller]

Yep.

[Rachel Cruze]

And some states are even with even community college, you can go for free. So there's just. And I don't know what Texas, what they're doing. But yeah, but so yeah, so he can. I think he's going to have a lot of options. Kay. And I don't want you guys to box yourselves in to either he has to get the full right here or he's going to take on debt. That's not true. There's options A, B, C, D, E, F, G. I mean all the way down that he can go to a great, great school and yeah. Be able to. Whether he starts off in community college for a year or two and then moves schools to. To something else, whatever it looks like. But yeah, the man. That is a. That is a tale that is happening all over America right now.

[Dr. John Deloney]

All over.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yeah. Is these kids that get into deep travel, sports early, dedicate their whole half of elementary, middle, high school to something and then they get. And they are burned out and they're like, I don't want to do it. And then they feel the pressure because I've heard them say, well, mom and

[Dr. John Deloney]

Dad's like, mom and dad have put 40 grand towards this thing.

[Rachel Cruze]

Yes, yes. And we did this for the call. You know what I mean? And it gets there. And so trapping them there, that's just. That is so hard. And I get the. Obviously the financial advantage of having a full ride. Totally. But also. Yeah, just. Just their ability to not just enjoy life for the of it at 18, but to have actually a healthy life throughout college, not doing something they hate every day. That's a gift too. So thanks, Kay, for the call. I appreciate it. Great show, John. Always fun. Thanks to all those in the booth for making the show happen. And remember, there's ultimately only one way to financial peace, and that's to walk daily with the Prince of peace, Christ Jesus.