The Ramsey Show - App - Can I Afford To Buy a New Car in Baby Step 7? (Hour 2)

Episode Date: February 14, 2022

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Starting point is 00:00:00 I'm Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, it's the Ramsey Show, where debt is dumb, cash is king, and the paid-off home mortgage has taken the place of the BMW as the status symbol of choice. I'm Dave Ramsey, your host, Ken Coleman, Ramsey Personality, host of the Ken Coleman Show, number one best-selling author of the book Paycheck to Purpose, is my co-host today. As we answer your questions about your work, your career, your relationships, your mental health, and your money. It all works together. You can't keep it from doing it. Open phones at 888-825-5225.
Starting point is 00:01:10 Nicole is with us in San Diego. Hi, Nicole. Welcome to The Ramsey Show. Hi. Thank you for taking my call. Sure. What's up? So my mother recently passed away in November of last year, and she left me or named me as a beneficiary on her 401k plan she had with her job.
Starting point is 00:01:33 And I'm just trying to figure out kind of what to do with it. Okay. How much is in it? So there's about $235,000. My husband and I were debt-free. Our cars were paid for. My husband's military, so we don't own a home, but he will be retiring in about three years. So we want to kind of make the best choice for our family moving forward, whether it be investing or saving for a house
Starting point is 00:02:02 and just kind of figuring out how to really use money for a good purpose. Got it. Okay, cool. All right. If I were in your shoes, I would go to RamseySolutions.com and click on SmartVestor, which will connect you with one of the SmartVestor pros that we recommend. We're not in the investment business, but one of these ladies or gentlemen will sit down with you with the heart of a teacher
Starting point is 00:02:25 and tell you what some of your options are. Okay? Okay. And what I think will happen is, and probably what's wise, is you're going to roll this to an inherited IRA account, because it is an inherited retirement account, and I would put it in good growth stock mutual funds. You'll probably end up using it to buy a house later.
Starting point is 00:02:46 Thank you for your service. Tell your husband thank you for his service. And the inherited IRA, which you cannot avoid because this is an inherited retirement account, has a mandatory withdrawal over 10 years. You're going to have to take out a tenth of it a year. Okay. And that's new rules they put in place because the government doesn't want you to inherit it and leave it alone
Starting point is 00:03:10 they want their freaking tax money and so they're going to force you to liquidate it over the next 10 years anyway but you may liquidate it sooner than that and just pay the taxes on it when you do to have the money for the house okay yes i do remember her mentioning the 10-year rule when I kind of called to get an idea about it, and she did say we would have to withdraw a little bit more than just the minimum in order to make sure it was gone within that 10-year period. Yeah, but I'm not leaving it with the 401K. I'm going to roll it to an IRA with a SmartVestor Pro where you have a person in your corner that's advising you, teaching you, showing you what your options are. And we're not going to stay with your mom's old company.
Starting point is 00:03:52 That's not a plan. And by the way, for the rest of you, anytime you leave a job, you take your 401k with you always by rolling it over to an IRA. Because you have control. You have more options. And you have people that will help you pay better attention to it than the old HR group at the old place. Always take it with you. It's portable, and that's one of the beauties of the 401k plan.
Starting point is 00:04:17 And, Ken, what we're seeing from an employment perspective, when I started doing this show 30 years ago, a lot of companies, the vast majority of companies had pensions, and a few of them had 401ks. The 401k was just starting to be a thing. The IRA was starting to become a thing, and people like me pushed it hard because it's in your control. A pension's not in your control. Nowadays, just a very small percentage of companies have pensions, and the vast majority have 401ks. And, oh, by the way, 80-something percent of the companies have a match on the 401k, but they do not have to fund a pension. Yeah, I think the pension is just a thing of the past. I think that, you know, for a variety of reasons, you understand the nuances of that better than I do. But I definitely think the 401k is a winning program for people, and thus it's a
Starting point is 00:05:10 winning program for companies. And so it's certainly with where everything is right now, 20 million people have changed jobs in the last five months, salaries are going up, signing bonuses, all kinds of benefits. Companies are trying to do everything they can to attract and retain talent. And obviously, a 401k, this is a benefit that people now honestly expect. They really do expect it. You'll hear it. If you don't have a good program, they won't join you. Kate and Aaron are with us in Dublin, Ohio. Hi, Kate and Aaron. How are you guys? Hi, Dave. We're doing well. Good. What's up?
Starting point is 00:05:45 Thank you so much for taking our call. So my brief story, I'm a worship pastor here in Ohio. I worked at a church for almost 10 years, and then they began to embrace some woke resources and ideology, so I knew it was time to move on. The next solid option that God opened the doors for were me to come down here to Columbus to raise a family at a different church. But we're feeling pretty discouraged. The same house that we lived in back home from where we were up northeast is $100,000 more in this area. We're currently staying in a parsonage rent-free with no utilities.
Starting point is 00:06:21 We paid off our home before we moved down here, but we don't want to purchase a home that is already, we're already outgrowing with the current state of our family. After, yeah, after just paying off our house for this, so we're essentially would have to get a mortgage for a minimum $100,000, probably more because of how crazy the market is here. For the same house, we just paid off. How long can you stay in the parts? We negotiated three more months when I signed and took on with this job, so three months from today.
Starting point is 00:06:56 But I'm sure they would allow us to stay here a little longer. They're pretty flexible. I think our concern with that, in the same Brath is can we save quickly enough? As we've noticed, the market is just increasing. That wasn't why I was asking. Got it. The reason I was asking was to give you time to calm down. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:07:17 Because you're pretty hyped up. Yeah, we're exhausted. I can hear it, man. I mean, you're like, ah like you're on your last nerve man and worship pastors are known for getting rich i mean they just you guys make so much money yeah right not at all youth pastors worship pastors is our christian version of starving people to death but yeah we love you we followed your principles when we first got married. We paid off all our debt.
Starting point is 00:07:46 We paid off our mortgage. We've been investing a little. We just don't want to destroy all of that progress. I appreciate that. Would this be the next option? We just had another baby. So what is your household income now? $65,000 plus the hospital.
Starting point is 00:08:03 And, Kate, are you working outside the home with that, or you got the babies? Yeah, no, I was. But after we had our second, we chose to stay home. Don't blame me. Don't blame me. Okay. I tell you what, guys. I want to help you on this, and I hear it in your voice.
Starting point is 00:08:19 I'm not making fun of you. I'm just... I get it. I understand. I know. And I've been there. So hang on through this stupid commercial break. We'll go make some money so we can come back and help you with your money, okay? All right get it. I understand. And I've been there. So hang on through this stupid commercial break. We'll go make some money so we can come back and help you with your money, okay?
Starting point is 00:08:28 All right, thanks. All right, be right back. This is The Ramsey Show. People all over the country are discovering a faith-based and budget-friendly way of meeting health care costs through Christian Health Care Ministries. Christian Healthcare Ministries, or CHM, is a nonprofit organization that helps members carry one another's burdens with healthcare expenses, and they have successfully shared each other's medical bills for nearly 40 years.
Starting point is 00:09:17 See if CHM is right for you by visiting chministries.org. CHM is a proud sponsor of Dave Ramsey Live Events. Ken Coleman, Ramsey Personality, is my co-host today. Kate and Aaron are in Dublin, Ohio. A new job as a worship pastor, much more expensive area than they came from. They're temporarily housed in the Parsonage, but only for a few more months, and then they've got to make a decision. Kate's staying at home with the new babies. Aaron's making 65, and a little bit of a shock to the system when they got to the more expensive area.
Starting point is 00:10:05 Is that a fair summary of what you guys told us? Very fair. What did you sell your house for in the other place? 205. Okay. And you've been trying to find something comparable closer to the church, reasonably close to the church anyway, and what price range are you finding there something comparable?
Starting point is 00:10:25 You said 100 extra right but so about didn't you say i would say yeah 315 320 would be a comparable parallel move okay got it but asking they're selling for far beyond that we saw one house we were interested in go for 50 000 above asking cash, which is just insane. Yeah. Okay. So here's the thing. You're either going to do one of two or three things. Number one, I want you to figure out a way to slow this process down because the more options you have, the more information you have, the better decision you're going to make.
Starting point is 00:11:10 This feels very urgent, very forced, and I smell a bad decision coming. Yeah. Does that feel right to you? Like you're stressed, like you're against the wall, and you're backed up, and you're going to say something later like, I was forced to. You weren't really forced. You just put yourself in that corner. Yeah. Okay.
Starting point is 00:11:24 So I want to slow down so that might look like renting for a year okay and just calm just breathe a little and during that year number one we're going to learn more about the area than we know now which will give you more options um you're going to discover how far out you have to drive for the prices to start dropping. You know, there's a point at which the lines cross between ridiculous commute and great price. Yeah, I've got a 15-minute commute, so I'm spoiled. You know, but if you went 15 minutes further than my house the prices drop because i'm kind of on the edge of rule where i am now you know what i'm saying yeah and the further you get out in the
Starting point is 00:12:12 country the better the prices are right right but you know but the but that you know so you got to find that because you don't want a two-hour commute right you know you just but you do you do you probably are not going to be in the back door of this church we probably already figured that out or you're going to spend that year uh piling up cash and trying to say we're going to get a fifty thousand dollar mortgage and not a hundred thousand and we're going to bite that bullet and that's the price we're going to pay to be there rather than in in place a rather than place b got it the other thing you're going to bite that bullet, and that's the price we're going to pay to be there in place A rather than place B. The other thing you're going to be able to do when you do that is you can slow down,
Starting point is 00:12:51 and you don't feel forced into one of these crazy bidding wars because you have to choose from what's on the plate right now. You can say, over the next year, I'm going to find something to sneak up on. Okay? I'll give you an example of what happens when you slow down. Okay? This one's weird. But this happened to a friend of mine not long ago. Medium, middle-class price range house.
Starting point is 00:13:16 A little bit more than you all are talking about, but in our area, it's a little bit more. Okay? And we've got all these people moving from other states to tennessee to the point that to get away from the craziness and to the point it's almost like a joke like california uh refugees in tennessee i mean it's just it's like a running joke and for the people moving here it is they're laughing too but it's like californians are buying everything you know inside it's like you can't get a house because stupid california is buying everything it is this kind of thing's going on this is the talk around the water cooler you know i'm not mad
Starting point is 00:13:48 at you people from california this is what's really going on so my friend actually you know and the bidding wars are big time in nashville it's hard to get a house big time my friend actually found a guy who sold her a house at below market price right not much below but just slightly below and um so that he didn't have to sell it to somebody from california yeah he's worried about voting he's just like it was a personal thing you know and that you know and that it's funny but you'll'll find something where God will supply your needs, where there's somebody that says, you know what, I might could put this house up for a bidding war,
Starting point is 00:14:31 but I'm going to bless this young worship pastor and sell it to him at appraisal instead of 50 over appraisal. And, you know, you'll find that through someone at the church, word of mouth, even through the real estate agent that puts the word out there that that's what's going on. And God is not shocked by where you are. He's not surprised. I would add, here's what another year allows you to do. You could put the word out in your actual church community.
Starting point is 00:15:01 You don't know yet. Maybe you already know that there's a couple contractors, people that could actually help you renovate something to where you could find a jewel. It's not a piece of trash or a death trap, but something that needs some TLC. Get it cheaper, but it has the square footage that you need, and it turns into an unbelievable financial gain for you down the line. I mean, those are possibilities. I'm not saying that's your only option, but that's something to consider. You could get something like that. You pay cash for it. What I want more for you guys than anything is peace that you don't have right now.
Starting point is 00:15:33 Right. And we need it. You got little babies. You feel like you're 1,000 miles from home and you don't have enough money. And it's just frenetic and frantic and anxiety and um and i don't blame you for being there but i kind of heard all of that in your way you were talking earlier and i'm already hearing a tone change just by telling you to wait a year i'm hearing you calm down a little bit true what principles would you say about renting and any wisdom on that um some renting properties
Starting point is 00:16:06 we've seen here they're going for 2,500 yeah just cheap as possible because we're just buying time whatever whatever money you spend on rents buying time that's all it is and the cheaper you can get obviously the less you're paying for the time and the more you can save towards you can add to this pile of savings you got from the sale of your other house. And so, yeah, the $2,500 doesn't sound very appealing. Are there real space issues in the Parsonage? Some. Well, not space.
Starting point is 00:16:37 Just more of a, I would say, an updating and space for the kids and safety. Yeah, how long will they let you stay? I mean, if you could talk them into letting you stay there for nine months, maybe the magic number is not a year. And the beautiful thing about the Parsonage is you could leave at any time without breaking a lease if you found something. Sure. They've been so kind, and I'm sure they would allow us to do that.
Starting point is 00:17:01 Yeah, I would ask for and say, listen, here's the counsel I've been given. The counsel I've been given is to slow down and gather more options and more information, and that feels right to us. We'd rather not move to a rental. If you could suck it up and live there for free and they'll let you and still do this extended time a little bit, that's what definitely I would do that. Yeah, if there's some safety issues, I'd ask the church to address the safety issues. That's what definitely I would do that. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:17:28 If there's some safety issues, I'd ask the church to address the safety issues. The kids don't care about the updating. And you guys can put up with the non-updating. It's camping. It's an adventure. It's a nine-month adventure. Yeah. It feels like camping for sure. I mean, just look at it as, you know, hey, we're going to do this as an adventure.
Starting point is 00:17:41 It's what we're going to, you know, it's the same thing, you know, these people that sell their house and live in an RV or something. It's an adventure. We're going to do this as an adventure. It's the same thing as people that sell their house and live in an RV or something. It's an adventure. We're going to do this. And so it's certainly not doing it for the luxury or something like that. And let the timing unfold. I love Swindoll's saying. He says, God is never late but seldom early.
Starting point is 00:18:04 That's the process. And I think this is going to turn out okay a year from today. I really do. All of my life experience and my faith experience points to the fact that it's going to turn out okay. But it's not going to turn out okay if you feel pressured, cornered, anxiety-ridden, like you're forced into something. And, you know, then you'll go. You'll look back and you'll go, and then God gave us this house. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:18:40 Yeah. And I've done that with houses many times. The house I'm living in right now. Yeah, I feel like it was the same thing. I had a lot of options. I kept moving the options around until I turned over the right shell and the pea was there, you know. But lots of options and lots of information gives you slowdown, gives you better decisions. Really good question, you guys. I'm proud of you.
Starting point is 00:19:03 Thank you for calling. I hope that helps. Ken Coleman Ramsey personality is my co-host today. Thank you for joining us, America. We're glad you're here. In the lobby of Ramsey Solutions on the debt-free stage, Jacob is with us. Hi, Jacob. How are you? Hey, I'm doing great.
Starting point is 00:19:58 How are you? Better than I deserve, man. Welcome. Where do you live? I live in Redding, California. Cool. Good to have you. Welcome.
Starting point is 00:20:04 So how much debt have you paid off? I paid off $63,000 in about two and a half years. Good for you. And your range of income during that time? So it started off about $37,000 and currently $61,000. Good for you. Cool. What kind of debt was the $63,000? Oh man, all kinds of stupid. Man, so I had student loans. I had credit cards. I had car loans. Normal. Yeah. Normal.
Starting point is 00:20:33 Yeah. And then I also had stupid tax with a 14% interest rate with Wells Fargo student loans. Whoa. Oh, man. Ouch. It was, yeah. Yeah, it was pricey. What do you do for a living?
Starting point is 00:20:43 I'm a social worker. Good for you. Yeah. Good for you. So this is very cool, man. It was, yeah. Yeah, it was pricey. What do you do for a living? I'm a social worker. Good for you. Yeah. Good for you. So this is very cool, man. Good for you. I'm proud of you. How old are you?
Starting point is 00:20:50 I'm 29. Wow. Yeah. Killed it. Yeah. So what happened two and a half years ago? What was the wake-up call? How'd you get connected to this Ramsey stuff?
Starting point is 00:20:58 So originally it started in 2017. I was a youth pastor at a local church in Red Bluff, California, which is 30 miles south. And one of the members of our church who wanted to start Financial Peace University, he approached me, asked me, Hey, what do you think of this? Do you want to join us? I'm like, I don't have any debt. I have $70,000 in savings. I'm good.
Starting point is 00:21:23 I'll never have to worry about that. I'm kind of out of Eric and attitude. Well, two years later, I felt like I needed to resign. Went through the $17,000 of my emergency fund. I blinked and I had nothing. And I was living on my credit card. And all of a sudden, I had $30,000 worth of student loans. I had a car that broke down that I had a $200 car payment, and then that broke down.
Starting point is 00:21:56 So I still had a little bit of debt that had to go into a new car. And so it carried over. And yeah, blinked in $63, dollars in debt in about five months and oh yeah yeah that's what i said um and then uh one day it was june of uh 2019 and um friends i hang out with on friday night they were like yeah we're doing this financial peace university stuff i'm like i don't really want to do that. That doesn't sound fun. And then, but I had nobody to hang out with. Oh, there it is. This is my best marketing plan, limited social ability. That's right.
Starting point is 00:22:38 So we all took it together, and, man, I got on the plan, and I became addicted. To be quite honest, the first budget hurt because I did not realize how much I was spending. And once, about two and a half months later, I met my lovely fiance now. Oh. And she wanted to go through FPU. You can't get away from it. I couldn't. It's everywhere.
Starting point is 00:23:07 I really couldn't. So we went again in February of 2020 and with the same- Just in time for the pandemic. It was in the middle of a pandemic. We went to this new thing called Zoom. We had no clue what it was at the time. Now it's what we do.
Starting point is 00:23:24 But yeah, so we went through it. She was debt-free. We met in college. She went through college completely debt-free. I admired her for that because I had student loans up the wazoo. And just started that journey. Yeah. Very cool.
Starting point is 00:23:40 Good for you. Thank you. Well done. When are you getting married? We don't have a date set. We're thinking sometime between October and January of this year and next year. Good for you. Wow, very good. Yeah, thank you. Very cool. So what do you tell people the key to getting out of debt is? You paid off $63,000 in two and a half years? Yeah. For me, the key was vulnerability.
Starting point is 00:24:16 So for me, when I was doing everything in private, it was easy to hide my wounds and hide the hurt that I had. And when I had true vulnerability and I was like, I don't know what I'm talking about. I don't know what I'm doing. I need help. Here's my wounds. Here's my $63,000 of drowning. I need help. And that was the turning point for me was when I was able to get to that point of humility and vulnerability of just reaching out for help. Wow.
Starting point is 00:24:44 Yeah. Yeah, I want to ask you, this is really interesting. So you go and you take FPU, so there you were with a group of people. How quickly did you go from, and I'm not sure you had real shame, but I think the vulnerability, but how soon did you go from negative emotions about yourself to realizing, wait a second, I'm not the only one, and I'm here with other people who are admitting the same thing,
Starting point is 00:25:02 that vulnerability. How did that translate for you as you kept going through it? You know, you hit the nail on the head. And shame is that two-headed monster that is real in our own imagination. But when we go into community, it's like, man, you're here too. I think of C.S. Lewis's quote of how friends are made. It's like, no way. I thought I was the only one. And so that was honestly the thing for me was once I started hearing like, wow, other people are on the same journey as me. And the other part was
Starting point is 00:25:39 just admitting that I'm not the smartest man in the room. There's people out there who've been there, done that, or he found ways to trailblaze. Why am I trying my own path? And just following those who came before me and just following their path. I might be the smartest man in the room, but it would be about a very limited subject. Yes, yes. A subject of your choosing, I might be the smartest man in the room, but it would be about a very limited subject. Yes, yes. A subject of your choosing, I might add. You might say that. Oh, that's awesome.
Starting point is 00:26:13 You're awesome, man. This is very cool. That really is strong. There's something about that that, you know, God gave me the gift of going broke and having the story to tell other people that, you know, I've been there, too. I know how it feels. And it's not a gift i want to give to anybody but um but but uh that drops you know it lowers the shame because the guy teaching this has been broke and so it's not a glasses on the end of your nose talking down to someone it's been there too dude and so that that makes a ton of difference in that vulnerability um uh i hadn't thought about
Starting point is 00:26:46 it as a precursor to transformation but that's a that's a beautiful picture it's a really pretty picture well done thank you well done good job well i'm proud of you man you're a hero who was your biggest cheerleaders financial peace university people and the fiancee yeah so uh phil and jill mon, they're the coordinators that were at my church. Um, they were huge cause they were broke in 2006 and then seven years later, they retired early and it was like, wow, I want to be like you guys. Like, I don't know how you guys did it. So, um, they were, they were huge cheerleaders. Um, my brother, he went through it as well. Um, and he paid off a lot of debt as well.
Starting point is 00:27:26 And he beat me by a month of being debt free. So that was kind of the thing that we're going back and forth and he beat me, but I'm here. You still won though. That's right. This is not a race you really lose. This is pretty powerful. And then also my fiance as well well she was huge um she's the nerd in the relationship and i'm the free spirit and i go out and do whatever i do and she's like this is the plan though like we gotta keep in mind keep in mind yeah that's good well done proud of you jacob good work we got a copy of baby steps millionaires for you that's the next chapter in your story to go on and become a baby steps millionaire be outrageously generous live like
Starting point is 00:28:09 no one else so later you can live and give like no one else a copy of total money makeover for you to give away there's probably someone that's gotten like six copies of that book and you're going to be the seventh and that gets them to do it finally ends up being a coaster on some people's table but it's all right it's a good book so check it out and we thank you for coming by man very well done jacob from redding california 63 000 paid off in two and a half years making 37 to 61 count it down let's hear a debt-free scream three two one i'm debt free! Yeah! This is how it's done! Woohoo!
Starting point is 00:28:50 Yeah, baby! Love it. This is The Ramsey Show. Thank you. Ken Coleman Ramsey personality is my co-host today. Open phones at 888-825-5225. If you're married, imagine never having another money argument. It's the number one thing married couples fight about, this money stuff. So how much better would your marriage be? What about your whole family?
Starting point is 00:30:03 Like, happy Valentine's Day. Hello. When you get on the same page with money, you have more peace in your finances and in your relationship. And here's the best way to do it. Join a Financial Peace University class. You'll learn how to make a budget together and follow our proven money plan. So you can not only stop fighting about money, you can start chasing your goals. And you do it as a team. The probability of you getting out of debt and becoming wealthy goes way up. Millions of couples have gone through this class and say it's the best thing they could have done for their marriage. Financial Peace University.
Starting point is 00:30:39 It can be for you, too. Decide today that you're ready and get on the same page. Well, just join a Financial Peace University class. You can get started with a free trial. Visit RamseySolutions.com slash FPU. RamseySolutions.com slash FPU. Sean is with us in Colorado Springs. Hey, Sean, welcome to the Ramsey Show. Thank you for taking my call, Dave. How are you doing? Better than I deserve. What's up? So, down and dirty, new in my life. For a long time, I've been on baby step seven, and truly baby step seven.
Starting point is 00:31:12 Good for you. And we have our six-month emergency fund. It's made set off of how much we know we can live off of in a year. We have saved up a lot of money. I just recently came back from deployment. We saved up a substantial amount of money that is just sitting there, but we fully fund ROC TSP, ROC IRAs, 401ks, ESA. We have one ESA left that we can still contribute to.
Starting point is 00:31:39 So the question is, I have an old Dave Ramsey beater truck, and everybody keeps telling me, hey, man, you're doing so well. Why don't you upgrade? My argument for this is I know I'm nearing retirement. My wife will still work. I'll be in retirement, and I still got to wait on that government pension to kick in. And so I don't know how much money I need to save for that, any kind of contingency to come up,
Starting point is 00:32:01 or if I'm just being too stingy with myself and I get to live a little bit and upgrade, we are millionaire next door to millionaires. So your policy is worth a million dollars or more, cash for the vehicle, do it. But I got other things coming up, like I said, retirement. Do I upgrade or do I just hold off? How expensive a truck are you talking about buying? I don't think I can ever just out and out buy a brand new vehicle, especially right now.
Starting point is 00:32:33 These are quite as much as they used to be. Let's pretend that you did. How expensive a truck would that be? What would you spend? $60,000. And you have a net worth of what? $1.2 million. And a household income of what?
Starting point is 00:32:52 Approximately $100,000 to $120,000 a year. Okay. The way I make decisions on things like this is I ask myself, because this is just a luxury item. Okay? It's just something fun to buy. That's all it is, right? Not necessarily. Well, it is.
Starting point is 00:33:09 The truck is a want. It's a toy that you're wanting to buy, and that's why you're holding off emotionally. If you take $60,000 cash and $100 bills, Uncle Benjamin Franklin, and you put it in the fireplace and lit it on fire and watched it burn, your life does not change one ounce. Okay. You've got $1.4 million, $1.3 million, minus $60,000. You make $100,000 a year.
Starting point is 00:33:49 You're going to be just fine. If you burned it just to watch it go up the chimney, now I'm obviously not suggesting that that's ludicrous. Okay? But buying a truck that goes down in value is fairly close to that, but it's not the same thing. And so what would I do if i woke up in your shoes um i wouldn't be rash and i wouldn't be out of control but sometime in the next six
Starting point is 00:34:13 months i would be the owner of a new pickup truck i think you should yes sir that's what i call your advice he's processing you can hear it you can hear the the gears grinding there buddy you do you hear what i'm saying that it's not you're not making an unwise decision that's the point of my metaphor yes you're fine you've done a great job. You scored. Touchdown. Well, that was my wife.
Starting point is 00:34:50 She made me do it, so I think her every day. Well, that's fine. You and your wife. You're smart. Together, you're smart. I mean, you just did great. Touchdown. Touchdown.
Starting point is 00:34:59 You just scored a freaking touchdown. Now, do the touchdown dance. Buy the truck. Enjoy some of it. We're not being rash. I'm not suggesting you spend a million of your million for. If $60,000 is a spit because you've done such a good job. And this is the beauty of living like no one else so that later you can live and give like no one else. Also, once you be on a steady diet of generosity.
Starting point is 00:35:27 That's important. You will get more enjoyment of the things that you actually own if you're also simultaneously generous. It somehow gives you permission to enjoy the nice things. That's absolutely right. And I've got to tell you, this is amateur psychology advice here, but I would go just do some test drives. Just ease into this. He's been gazelle intense. They've done it the right
Starting point is 00:35:49 way and he's still going, okay, what about the pension? And you're thinking and the reality is everything you and your wife have done as a team together to walk the baby steps, you're not going to do something stupid. The very source of this question means you are not going to do stupid
Starting point is 00:36:05 with money he's won that battle allow yourself to celebrate as dave's saying but not just with the truck but to go wait a second we did this we're going to be not just fine we are millionaires and we're going to be wise and i i go test drive a couple and just ease into it psychologically then i think it feels a little better if you have that money invested decently 1.2 million will be 2.4 in seven years exactly if you don't add anything to it that's correct right so that that you know you're gonna be okay man yeah you've done great you're gonna be all right it's gonna work out it's gonna work out this is why we teach this stuff this is truly a baby steps millionaire yeah you know truly what the you know the reason i guess one of the reasons the book's the number one bestseller yeah well i've asked you about this
Starting point is 00:36:48 before on the air and i think i think it's good to do it again there is this is a normal psychological response for somebody that was cheetah you know like yeah gazelle intense you know you know get away from the cheetah go after it you know and and it's hard to adjust to it yeah it's hard to spend money on something like that when you've been so disciplined yeah and it's a lot harder for those folks for those of us that earned it the old-fashioned way we earned it you know that thing that old commercial right you better believe it's a lot harder for us to let loose and enjoy the money than it is someone that gets sudden wealth it's true sudden, that's one of the reasons the Bible talks about it being dangerous, is it can come sudden and somehow you don't have that trepidation about spending something.
Starting point is 00:37:34 You know, that's why a lot of winners end up broke more often than they do wealthy. Yeah. There are no emotional calluses to remember. Nothing. Yeah. The bankruptcy rate is four times the national average among uh you're four times more likely to file bankruptcy if you uh got won the lotto than if you didn't that's that's pretty bizarre that is crazy the divorce rate is six times the national
Starting point is 00:37:57 average among a lot of winners so it's like um you couldn't afford to get rid of her before i don't know what is the deal man how does that work it's a great point though if you think about it where where why does the divorce go up yeah back when it was hard and you know it doesn't make sense but i guess you know we always laughed and said sharon didn't leave when we went broke because she didn't have a car but i mean that was uh uh you know that was somewhat of a laughing thing and somewhat true. So maybe there's something to it, right? Oh, yeah. But we know she really loves you now because, you know.
Starting point is 00:38:32 It's Valentine's Day. She has to. It's like federal law. That is true. It's federal law. That is true. So if you've been married 40 years, it's federal law. You have to love your husband on Valentine's Day.
Starting point is 00:38:40 Even if he's Dave Ramsey, you still have to love him. I was unaware of this. It's still mandatory. I was unaware of this i was unaware of this legislation little known piece of uh it's a sub subcategory the roth ira they buried it in the budget they buried it in the budget where they bury everything that's right where great things go to die oh my gosh ken coleman ramsey personality-host. Good hour. Good job to the folks in the booth. The booth people, they did a great job.
Starting point is 00:39:08 This is The Ramsey Show. Hey, it's Kelly, associate producer and phone screener for The Ramsey Show. If you would like to do your debt-free scream live on the show, make sure you visit theramseyshow.com and register. We would love for you to come to Nashville and tell Dave your story.

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