The Ramsey Show - App - Getting Out of Debt Gives Yourself a Raise (Hour 2)

Episode Date: February 14, 2020

Chris Hogan, Debt, Savings, Budgeting, Retirement Tools to get you started:  Debt Calculator: http://bit.ly/2QIoSPV Insurance Coverage Checkup: http://bit.ly/2BrqEuo Complete Guide to Budgeting: http://bit.ly/2QEyonc Interview Guide: http://bit.ly/2BuGnZE Check out other podcasts in the Ramsey Network: http://bit.ly/2JgzaQR 

Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, broadcasting from the Dollar Car Rental Studio, this is the Dave Ramsey Show, where America hangs out to have a conversation about your life and your money. I'm Chris Hogan, sitting in for Dave Ramsey, and I am excited to take your calls. The lobby is full out here today. All kinds of fantastic looking folks. Hello, everybody. And listen, we want to hear from you. So if you've got a question about your life or your money, call us.

That number to call is 888-825-5225. Again, that's 888-825-5225. As always, you can find us on social media at Ramsey Show or look for me at ChrisHogan360. Feel free to plug in on social media and let us know your question as well. So we're going to get to the phone lines automatically, and I've got Christy on the line in Missouri. Christy, how are you? I am great.

Thank you. How are you? Oh, I'm focused and not finished, young lady. What's on your mind? Well, I have a question. So, first of all, we've got, I believe, after we pay our bills this week, we will have our thousands saved up. Good. We haven't done Financial Peace University yet, but just did some major soul searching.

We were facing foreclosure in December. House is now caught up, praise God. Yes. And we've got our thousand either by today's check or the one in two weeks. I've got to double-check a couple things. My question is, I am fortunate enough through my work that I get to work from home, which is made doing overtime a breeze because when you can do overtime in your PJs, you don't mind working an extra couple hours here or there.

Or when it's snowing and no one else can get to work and they want people to do overtime, you just walk into that extra room in the home. Where will that fit into my debt snowball? Do I put all of that extra into my snowball? Or is it okay? I go back, sorry, my husband's father lives in Florida. And he's been having some health issues.

Everything seems okay, but they just put in two more stents. And so we kind of was wondering if it was okay to not touch our snowball with what we're, you know, using our normal budget on, but take maybe a quarter of that overtime extra and put it into a fund to save up to get back down there to see him. Would that seem reasonable? Okay, so let's talk about this. Tell me, first and foremost, Christy, how much debt are you all in and what kind is it? We're spending Valentine's Day over a pizza, filling out the EveryBellerBudget app,

and creating our snowball tonight. That's our Valentine's Day. It sounds super romantic, but it does sound empowering. Hey, absolutely. So what debt do you have? How much debt do you all have? I'm guesstimating because, like I said, I haven't put it all in, but we're right at about $40,000.

Okay. And what kind of debt is that? It is some student loans, our vehicle, and then there's about eight in credit cards. Okay. All right. So you've got a variety of the debt. What's your all's household income with the overtime? Well, see, the overtime, sometimes it's there, sometimes it's not.

So without the overtime, we're right at $80,000. Okay. $80,000. And both of you are working outside the home? We're both working full-time. Okay, both working full-time. All right. And so you're wanting to get down.

How much do you think it will cost you to go visit your father-in-law? Honestly, I think we can do it in about $1,000. Okay. All right. I mean, it's just gas money down, and we can stay with them. If we needed to stay somewhere else i have a sister that can give me a great discount so i can stay somewhere for 400 for the week okay well and when's the last time you were down to see him we they've been to see us but when they come to see us because

there's adult children and great-grandchildren it's not as good of a visit. So we saw them in October, but we really only had about a three-hour time that was just for them and my husband and I. A lot of it was spent with four- and five-year-old great-grandchildren, and that's not a quality visit. I mean, it is, but it's not a good visit for my husband and his parents. No, I understand. Here's my thought on this. I like that you all, number one, are taking control of your financial situation, where you're looking at this and you're realizing there's nobody that's going to save the day. This is something you all have to do. So sitting down and being intentional, I love that you have your $1,000. I think it's imperative that you all get intentional about attacking this $40,000 in debt. But also seeing family is

important. I think the two of you sitting down talking about this and looking at the time frame of what that's going to take and diverting some of that overtime pay toward that visit. And again, hear me, this is a visit. I'm not talking about we're not coming up with something you're trying to do every month that's outside of the norm, because getting out of debt requires that you get serious. And it's not about math. It's about momentum. You've got to get focused and get intentional, knowing when I get out of debt requires that you get serious. And it's not about math. It's about momentum. You've got to get focused and get intentional, knowing when I get out of debt, I give myself a raise.

I don't have to work any extra. I don't have to ask anyone. I actually get more money than I'm in control of. And so you all taking a trip down to go see someone that's an ailing family member, that's not an issue. But I think I want you all to come up with, hey, after that, this is what we're focused on. And you're only doing a percentage of your overtime toward that.

The rest needs to go toward attacking the debt. So that means you guys are not going out to eat. Okay? The only way you're going out to eat is if you cook food inside and take it outside and eat it. Right? That's how you get it. But you've got to buckle down and get serious about this. This is your financial future that's at stake.

And I think what we have to do is to get very intentional. And taking that first step is a big deal. Getting that $1,000, a lot of people look at that and they say, that's not that hard. No, it is because you got to break some cycles. You got to begin to look and you sell some stuff and you get intentional and you tighten down your budget. So for Valentine's Day, I love that you guys are going to sit down over a pizza and do your every dollar budget. It's the best budgeting tool on the planet, but it's also going to empower you. It's going to give you guys an opportunity to take control of your money. So I appreciate you calling in. I think you and your husband sitting down talking about this, you can get on the same page. You guys can make this happen.

Thank you. Next up, I've got Sandy out of New York. Sandy, how are you? I am focused and not quite finished yet. Well, you know I like you. I like you already. What's on your mind? So my husband is active duty military, and we are currently working baby steps.

We're in four and five. Okay. As well as just like there's some 3B in there because we don't own a home. We move about every 18 to 24 months. Okay. So my question is this. He went back to school on Army time. He is now required to do 19 years.

We're 11 years into that. As we were factoring and figuring out our 15% on baby step four, we did not factor in his pension. Is that correct? We don't, or should we? Because once you're in 19 years, they go ahead and extend you that final year. So he'll have 20 years. Okay. So, but you all have been doing 15% as of now, right?

Yes. But when I was like, you know, running the numbers and everything, I'm like, based on where we're going to be, we like to, you know, we like to travel. We want to, you know, talking about our dreams and our high definition and all that and want to make sure we are not supposed to factor in his tension into that or should. No, I like the fact that you guys are staying focused and you are doing your 15%. That's the focus. That's exactly where you want should be. No, I like the fact that you guys are staying focused and you are doing your 15%. That's the focus. That's exactly where you want to be. And listen to me.

I've never had anybody call me and say, Hogan, we had too much money. I'm frustrated. And if that's the case, you can send me a check. It's okay. I'll gladly take it. But you guys stay focused on the 15%. The baby step 3B of saving for a house.

Do that, but be smart. I thank you all for your service to the country, your husband, and you as well. But be smart about this and slow down. You want to buy a home when you can be there for three years or more. That's the key. Keep investing. Stay focused. You're not finished, young lady.

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It's Christians financially and spiritually supporting each other. It's what Christian Healthcare Ministries has done for over 35 years. And our members have shared over $2.5 billion in medical bills. To learn more, visit chministries.org. That's chministries.org. That's chministries.org. Christian Healthcare Ministries is a proud sponsor of Dave Ramsey Live Events. chministries.org. Hello, everybody. You are listening to The Dave Ramsey Show. I'm Chris Hogan filling in for Dave this hour, and we're having a blast. I tell you, our lobby is packed full. We've got people that are coming to the Money and Marriage event that Rachel and Les Baird will be doing this evening, and that one of our live events, you need to check it out. You can go to DaveRamsey.com and look.

We're doing Financial Peace Live all around the country. Anthony O'Neill and I just did one in Maryland. We've got a great opportunity to be able to move forward, and you've got an opportunity to come and attend the event live. It is going to be absolutely fantastic. So check it out and come see us. If you have not had a chance to do that, you will absolutely have a blast. Okay, we're going to get back to the phones. If you've got a question, give us a call. That number to call is 888-825-5225. Again, that's 888-825-5225. Or you can find us on social media. I'm at Chris Hogan 360. All right, let's get back to the phone lines. I've got Don on the line. Don, how are you? Hi, it's Don Marie. Don Marie. How are you? I'm sorry,

young lady. How are you today? That's okay. I'm just freaking fabulous. And I want to be fired up because we're just starting this journey. Um, my, my question, um, the short, the short side of the question is I've always been a fairly decent saver. And we're on the every dollar budget, and he knows where all of the money is. And I have about $6,400 in a certificate that's at a 3.2% rate. And it matures in September. Our two lowest debts, one is $10,000 at 0% interest and the other is a car note at $12,000 at 6.5%. Should I take that $6,400 and pay towards one of those? Should I leave it there and let it grow and roll over?

Because I really want to make headway. Right. So these are the only two debts you all have? No. Okay. They're the two smallest debts. Okay. What else do you guys owe? There is another vehicle

and then life happened and there's a credit card balance and a personal loan balance. Okay. So how much is the other car loan? That's about $20,000. Okay. And how much is the credit card? The credit

card and the personal loan is a big chunk of it. That's about the $47,000 combined. Whoa. Did you guys consolidate debt? I tried to while he was trying to start a business. Okay. And I didn't know he was doing that. And then when he told me he was in trouble,

then I was like, well, let's get personal loans. Let's consolidate. Let's do this. Well, he couldn't qualify. Gotcha. And you guys, are you married? Are you guys married? Yes.

Okay. We are, yeah, yeah. Okay. And so you look at this. That's why this is all ours. Well, that's what I was getting ready to say. You were doing some specific pronouns. You said his.

You need a plural pronoun. That's what I was getting ready to say. You were doing some specific pronouns. You said his. You need a plural pronoun. That's our. We were married, but we had separate accounts. Listen here. Now we're all in one account. Okay, good. That one hair on my head was about to get riled up. So I'm glad.

You got to be in this thing together, doing it the right way. Don Marie, here's the deal. I like that you guys are focused right now because you do. You've got a whole plethora of all types of debt here. I like the idea of definitely taking that money and putting it toward the $10,000 debt without a doubt. Because as you work the debt snowball, this is going to be about working smallest to biggest. It's not about math. It's about momentum.

And so you get focused and you get intentional. And I like that you guys are together in your bank account. You're talking about this and you're looking at it and you see it for what it is. Right now, you're allowing all of this debt to steal your income. So you're working really, really hard and not feeling like you're making any kind of progress. And so taking a stand for this, this is going to be crucial. You guys doing this, talking about it together. There's no more one person trying to do something than the other. I want you to be unified in this, talking about it, looking at it for what it is, but I want you to get your future back. And when you get out of debt, that's exactly

what happens. And you do have to be focused. You do have to start to get frustrated. And I want you to get mad at the debt. Get frustrated and irritated at it. But I want you to understand you can control your momentum and how fast you go. And so you look at this and you look at taking on extra jobs if you have to, throwing every dime of that money toward debt. But you have to get to that point of where you're sick and tired of being sick and tired. And you get irritated and frustrated at the debt, but continue working together in unison, of where you're sick and tired of being sick and tired, and you get irritated and frustrated at the debt,

but continue working together in unison, talking about this and really, really digging in and looking at it. Because I get people that will tell you, I really want to get out of debt. I want you to know your why. What is that thing that's motivating you? What's going to cause you to run faster than you ever have before? And when you start to think about those dreams,

not only the things you want to do for yourself, but the things you want to do for the people you love the most, it's a game changer because now you see it in high definition. And I tell people to look at it in high def. I talk about that in my book, retire inspired, but people didn't get it. And when I went into an electronic store, I was looking to go replace a dryer. And I saw this high definition TV. I saw a picture like I'd never seen before. The grass was swaying in the wind and I saw sweat about to come out of somebody's poor. This is how clear this TV was. And I thought, my goodness.

And it hit me a few weeks later. If I can get people to see their dreams as clear as I saw that picture on that TV, it's a game changer because now you're not just talking about traveling. You see yourself in Hawaii. You see yourself in Hawaii. You see yourself in Alaska. You see yourself writing that check for that charity that you care about and things get real. And that's what I want people to do.

I want it to be so tangible you can touch it because then you'll get intentional about working day in and day out to keep you on that trajectory. And it's very, very, very important. And so we have to stay motivated. We have to stay clear on what it. And it's very, very, very important. And so we have to stay motivated. We have to stay clear on what it is we're trying to accomplish. Thank you very, very much for that call. I want to go to social media here. And Angela from Twitter asks, we're going to be moving in about three to four years. Is it financially smarter to try to completely pay off our current mortgage or put that money aside for a down payment?

We owe about $100,000 on our current mortgage. Well, Angela, I would tell you this. If you guys have the opportunity to be able to attack that mortgage and get that thing out of your life, I want you to definitely run forward. Be intentional. Now, here's what I mean by this. When you sell this existing home, you're going to have the equity. That's what it's worth to be able to sell and then use that toward the purchase of the next home. So you're not losing or missing out on anything. I hope you

guys are being really intentional about what you buy next and that you don't overbuy. Home overbuying is a thing that's happening way too often because we start to get emotional. We start to think about what I want, not necessarily what we need, and that can cause us to overspend. So be very, very intentional. Yes, absolutely pay off the house if you're able to. And again, be very intentional about the next purchase. Understand how much you can afford to spend and where you want to live. I typically will tell people, if you're moving to a new area, why don't you go and rent for six months? Sit still so you can learn the area and learn where to buy, where to avoid. And it just gives you a little bit more knowledge and insight about what exactly is going on. So definitely

appreciate your question. Let's see here. Let me try to get to the phone here. I got Tom on the line. Tom, how can I help you? Hello. Thanks for taking my call. Oh, you're welcome, sir. How can I help you? Yeah. So my wife and I are 27. We're currently on baby steps six. Before following your guys' plan, I was just saving and playing around in the stock market a little bit. I've moved everything around into Roth and a simple IRA. However, I still have about $15,000 left that I moved into a Fidelity managed account and wondering if I should keep it there and then transfer it over to a Roth come 2021 and the last little bit in 2022. Okay. Or to put it against our house. Ah, how much do you owe on the home, Tom?

120. 120. And what's your all's household income? 65,000. Okay. I like the idea of taking that money and putting it toward the house without a shadow of a doubt. You all are like unicorns, 27 years old and on baby step number six. That is

fantastic, my friend. That's not an accident. That's being really, really focused and being really, really intentional. And I'm proud of you. But the concept of being able to attack and pay off that house before you're age 30, that's a big deal. So I want you to stay on that rhythm and be intentional. And remember, we're always one decision away from going backwards. So you've got to keep playing defense, being intentional. And I want you to stay focused because you are definitely not finished. This has been The Dave Ramsey Show. If you do this one simple thing that we all do, you are literally at risk of being hacked and someone stealing what you've worked so hard for. Do you ever use public Wi-Fi?

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Hello everyone, you are listening to the Dave Ramsey Show. I'm Chris Hogan filling in for Dave this hour and we get a chance to do some pretty cool stuff around here. We have a lot of fun. As you know, we are serious about hope. As we do events and our shows all around the country, we like helping people win. We like helping people to be really, really focused to help them be intentional. And we get an opportunity to do neat stuff. And today, without a doubt, is a very fantastic day. In the lobby, just joining us here at Ramsey Solutions on the debt-free stage, I've got

Angela and Matt that are joining me here from Lincoln, Nebraska. How are you all? Hi. Great, Chris. Great to be here. Yes. Good to see you. Now, I'm curious.

Is it warmer here than in Nebraska? Oh, yes. By like 20 degrees. Oh, really? And do you have snow on the ground over there? No. Okay, I'm curious, is it warmer here than in Nebraska? Oh, yes, by like 20 degrees. Oh, really? And do you have snow on the ground over there? No. Okay, good. Don't bring that stuff here, okay? We'll see what we can do for you. Yeah, do not do that. But excited to have you guys here. You guys have been on quite a journey.

Yes. As you stand on this debt-free stage, tell us, how much debt did you pay off? So we paid off about $102,000 in about five years, and we cash flowed about $10,000 for medical expenses during that time. Wow. $102,000. What kind of debt was that? It was student loans. It was a little bit of credit card and then adoption. We did adoption loans. Yeah. Gotcha. How much of it was student loans? Oh, that was about 77 of it. So that was the big part of it. It was a big part.

And you said credit cards too, huh? About 2,000. About 2,000. So not a lot in credit card debt. No. But what caused you all to say, okay, enough's enough. We need to do something. Well, a couple things happened.

So again, it was about five years ago. Luke was one year and I was just offered a job and just signed the papers in Lincoln, Nebraska, moving from Ohio. And I was like, you know what happens is that when everyone gets a job and they're making more money, then all of a sudden they spend more. And like, I don't want to do that. I want to be able to pay off all this debt that we've said that we wanted to do for 10 years. And then at the same time, one of my good friends, Cecilia, shout out, she had said, oh my gosh, well, we just started this Dave Ramsey program. And I used to listen to Dave Ramsey when he did the Debt Free Friday, but I didn't know

there was a program. And so she introduced us to it. And then once we did it, I introduced it to Matt. I'm like, this just is what we're looking for. This makes sense. Okay. Matt, be honest. When she told you about this, you're chuckling.

How did you feel? When she's coming home all excited about this, what did you say? Less excited, I would say, than she was is how I felt. You know, honestly, in one hand, it's kind of a common sense approach, I feel like, because, you know, obviously interest is money that you're always paying extra money than what you actually owe. That's right. On the other hand, we had more fry from my family than hers, a little pushback. I'm like, well, just save that money instead of paying the debt down.

And so I was under the now I know false impression that kind of student loan debt was good debt. It was almost more like an investment than debt. And so I was definitely more resistant than she was, at least at first. Okay. Angela, what did you have to do to convince him? Honestly, I kind of took Dave's advice. I would think, this would be really important to me if you did this. Oh, she did the Jedi mind trick.

She did the Jedi mind trick on you right there, Matt. The important card gets played a lot, I would say. And so, yeah, it's hard for me to combat that card. But seriously, as you guys look at this and you start to realize, hey, this is real, what were some of the sacrifices you made? Okay, honestly, so many. Like some people come on and they're just like, oh, it was so easy. It wasn't hard. No, this was very hard for us.

And so I'd say a big sacrifice for me is that we sold a house in Ohio and applied that debt. I mean, it was about $15,000. So we applied that to our debt. But I really wanted to buy another house, and I still do. So that's really hard is waiting to buy a house until you have an emergency fund, debt-free. So you waited. Yeah. We're still waiting.

And we're still saving for it. Good. So, yeah. Wow. She's an HGTV addict. So I feel like that's going to be harder for her than it's about anyone. For me, it was going down to just one car. We had two cars my entire adult life.

And so you kind of sacrifice a little bit of freedom, convenience. We're lucky that we both work for the University of Nebraska, and our son, he could walk to kindergarten if he had to. So it's all right there, but it was still just the constant double scheduling and triple checking the schedule and everything. That's probably the hardest, I'd say. Yeah, that is amazing. So you all paid off $102,000 in five years. What was your range of income? So we started off at around $60,000'd say. Yeah, that is amazing. So you all paid off $102,000 in five years. What was your range of income? So we started off at around $60,000. Okay. And then we went to about $124,000,

which is where we are right now. Okay. Wow. So you had a serious increase in income. Yeah, we did. I was in graduate school. And then what happened was we moved to Nebraska, and then both of us had higher paying jobs. Gotcha. We have listeners that, as you know, all around the country that are at various stages to a young couple or not so young couple that has debt and they're at that point. Is it possible to become debt free? Oh my gosh, yes. I really feel, I hear so many people say this, if we could do it, everybody could do it. Right.

I mean, it was just so hard. It just felt like you had to say no to so much and things kept coming up. But like if you literally just follow the plan, it just becomes like muscle memory where you just do it. And then before you know it, you look up and you're like, oh, my gosh, we're actually debt free. Yeah. I mean, you look at it and it makes the sacrifices worth it, doesn't it? It does. To have that freedom.

It absolutely does. And it is a lot of sacrifices. And we're not the greatest at self-sacrificing. And so she's right. If we could do it, absolutely anyone can do that for sure. Let me ask you this. What has it done for your relationship? Oh, that's probably the best part is that I feel like we can do anything.

We had gone through infertility, which I know a lot of your listeners do as well. And so that was a huge expense when we were thinking about what to do. And then we had adoption. And so that brought us a lot together. But then doing this together, really dreaming about our future, that's really what makes the difference. That is fantastic. All right. Well, listen, we've got Angela and Matt from Lincoln, Nebraska, paid off $102,005 years with a range of income from $60,000 to $124,000. All right, Angela and Matt, count it down. Let's hear a debt-free scream. Ready, Luke?

Three, two, one. We're debt-free! Congratulations. I tell you what, it never gets old hearing that and learning and hearing from Angela and Matt making sacrifices you know being in tune talking about this stuff together and you talk about nowadays

moving down from two cars to one vehicle most people would look at you like you had a third eye if you were to suggest that but as you get intentional and you start working together and taking those steps and for the people that are out there right now that have debt, that are serious about beginning this journey or continuing the journey, you heard them say that it was worth it. It was worth it to be able to have that freedom, to be able to be intentional and pause.

She wanted to buy a home really, really bad, she said. But they didn't because they stayed intentional. They followed the steps and they followed the plan. And it's not an accident. but they didn't because they stayed intentional. They followed the steps and they followed the plan. And it's not an accident. And I just want to encourage all the listeners out there that you can get serious. You can make this year the best financial year you've ever had by really starting to make progress. But stick into it, understanding what it is you want and why it's so important to you.

And I just want to encourage people to start. That's the deal. The beauty of the debt snowball is you're going to list your debts from smallest to biggest. Don't listen to people that will tell you to try to attack the highest interest rate first or to try to go any other way. Listen to me. We've helped over 6 million people get out of debt and build wealth. This recipe isn't broke. It isn't.

What you need to do is follow it. And so list your debts out smallest to biggest. And I want you to attack that little one. You're going to make minimum payments on everything else while throwing all extra money at that smallest debt and watch what happens. You start to build momentum, which builds confidence. And that's what gives you that inner drive to say, Hey, we can do this. And you lock arms and you keep working this program. That's amazing. And you know, I'm so excited for them to be able to put themselves in a position, uh, they've adopted and their family. I'm just very, very proud. You should see the looks on their faces. If you haven't looked at our YouTube channel, go check it out. You need to see a debt-free screen. And I definitely want to invite you to come and to

experience it live. I get the goosebumps. I do. I just get excited because you can see people taking back their future. And as I said earlier, when you get out of debt, you give yourself a raise. You ever thought about that? You don't need a performance review. You don't need to go sit down and talk to your employer or you don't even take on overtime. You get out of debt, you give yourself a raise. And that's more money that you can use toward building your future. And you guys, they're going to get a copy of my book, Everyday Millionaires, as they begin that everyday millionaire journey, because that's the deal. You get yourself out of debt. Now you start to take back momentum and you'd be able to take that journey. And you know what the most important thing is? We're blessed to be a blessing. And it puts ourselves in a position to be able to help other people. Broke people can't help people, but people that are on the journey that have freed themselves can. Put yourself in that position. There are people out there that need you. You can rock somebody's world with you. Work hard and you stay focused. Why? Because you're not finished. This is The Dave Ramsey Show. Thank you. you are listening to the Dave Ramsey Show.

I'm Chris Hogan, filling in for Dave. And boy, I tell you, our lobby is packed. We have people that are here excited for the Money in Marriage event. It is going to be phenomenal. Rachel Cruz and Les Parrott are going to have a phenomenal event. This is going to be a special Valentine's Day edition, and it is sold out. It is going to be a blast, and I know people out there are buzzing and are very, very excited to attend the event.

So I'm looking forward to it. And, oh, there's a live stream as well. If you go to DaveRamsey.com slash events, you have an opportunity for $19.99 to be able to stream it, and it is free with a Financial Peace membership. So, if you have that membership, you have an opportunity to be able to see the event, tune in live, right from the comfort of your own home, which is a great opportunity. So, we're going to get back to the phones.

I've got Isaiah on the line. Isaiah, how are you? I'm earning, burning, and ever learning. Chris, how are you doing? Hold on. Say that for me one more time i'm just earning burning and ever learning i like that very very much i'm gonna have to borrow that one uh i'm gonna have to tweet that you better uh you better quote me i will quote you my friend what's on your mind today oh man uh all good, but I need a little guidance. I am 29. I am an audio engineer. I make just about $50,000 a year.

I'm currently $23,000 in debt. I paid off about $10,000 last year. Started the program seriously last year. I currently live at home due to helping family out financially due to my dad being uh, being out of a job due to an injury. And he's going to be getting back into work in about a month or two. My question is this, uh, should I be, because of my age being 29,

um, not that it matters, but should I be saving right now to pay off more debt since I am living in home and then, uh, move out, save to move out, or should I stop my snowball and save to move out and then continue to the debt snowball? The only other variable that exists within this that may change things is the fact that I want to propose to my amazing girlfriend sometime this year.

So those are kind of the two main priorities. That's about as simple. So what are you thinking? Okay, you've got a lot going on. Tell me this. What's your household income? Just about $50,000. Okay, about $50,000.

And you said you paid off $10,000 last year in debt. $23,000 left. What kind of debt is left? What is that? Personal loan, a car loan, and student loans. Okay, how much is the personal loan? Personal loan is about $61,000, $86,000. Okay, and then you have the student loans. Okay. How much is the personal loan? Personal loan is about $61.86. Okay.

And then you have the student loan. Correct. How much? The student loan is about $17 or $15. Okay. Okay. All right. And so, okay, you got those two things.

Is your home, is your dad back to work yet? Not yet. He still has to get the surgery done. Okay. All right. Is it just you and your dad or is your mom there as well? My mom as well, but she is a stay-at-home mom. Okay.

Gotcha. So right now, are you the income for this home? No, forgive me. I was stating household as in myself, but if you're talking all around, I believe it's got to be somewhere around like 70, 75. Okay, no, I just was trying to make sure you weren't the single source of income for the family. No. Okay. No, I'm more of a supplement.

Okay, so mindset-wise, are you contributing anything to the household income? Bills, are you paying anything? How much are you paying out each month to live at home? Right now, I'm helping them out with about $425 in rent. And then anything else around the house that they may need. So I've helped them out with car stuff. I've helped them out with other things. Okay.

You've got an incredible opportunity. And I say this because you mentioned wanting to get engaged at some point later this year. I'm going to tell you, if I'm you, I'm going to, A, talk with them and see if there's more you can contribute that needs to be done. But I would use this as an incredible opportunity to get serious about clearing out this debt. I mean, what I don't want you to do is to run out right now and try to get a place to rent, right, and then sign a lease, and then you've got that debt situation. And then now you're looking then for a ring and then for a wedding. I mean, I'm going to encourage you like a big brother and tell you to just slow down and breathe a minute. Let's get intentional and clean up the rest of the $23,000 in debt.

Get that out. Then start to save your fully funded emergency fund of three to six months of expenses. Being intentional, you know out where you live in California, rent is real. You're going to have a serious dollar amount. You can be doing your research and try to put some of that back after debt. But I don't want you trying to save and attack debt. I want you singular focused. And so attacking the debt, getting that done, then building up your emergency fund.

I would tell you, I would not even think of proposing, right, until you got yourself out of debt and you're able to save up cash for that ring. And then being very intelligent about what you're doing as you move forward. That's what I would do. And I'm going to tell you, it all takes, it's going to take more time. It's going to be more like a crockpot than a microwave. But I assure you this, it's going to feel a whole lot different for you as you put yourself on a solid foundation. Then find a place to rent. You've got a security deposit.

And now you're starting to build your life yourself. But I'm not going to blend it and cause more headache and heartache, Isaiah. I think you've got an incredible opportunity, and that's what I would do. I would stay very, very intentional. All right, next up, I've got Anya on the line in Kansas. Anya, how are you? Hi, Chris. I'm doing well, and you?

Oh, I'm focused and not finished, young lady. What's on your mind? Awesome. I called like 200 times trying to get through to the phone, so I'm really excited, too. Well, good to speak with you. I have a quick question for you regarding investment. I'm 26 years old, and I work for a company that does not offer any investment options, so I do a Roth IRA, and every year I max it out.

However, I am not meeting the 15% goal that they recommend. Where else can I invest? What are some other options once you max out your Roth IRA? Fantastic. Great question. What is your household income, Anya? It is $43,000 a year. Okay. All right. So looking at this, if you're working for a company that doesn't offer a 401k or any type of retirement plan, this is where we have to become proactive. I like that you're using the Roth. That's great. But you're right. That's not going to get you to your 15%.

So you'll want to look at gross stock mutual funds outside of retirement. The best place would be sitting down with a SmartVestor Pro. These are investment professionals that Dave and I have vetted. They have been through a system of checks and balances to make sure that they're going to guide you in the way that we would. And so you can do that by going over to DaveRamsey.com and clicking on SmartVestor or go to my website, ChrisHogan360.com, and click on the Dream Team button. Either way, you're going to have an opportunity to talk to investment professionals that are going to be able to guide you. And they'll be able to show you. And it's really easy to set up and for you to really take control. And that way, you'll know that, hey,

I am on this path. And again, even if you stay with that company, you're going to have an opportunity to keep putting money away. But I really would ask your company, you know, what are they doing for the long term of the other teammates on there? And so talking with them, their HR benefits person about what's available and what are they doing? I'm sure other people have asked that same question, which also brings me to this. If you're out there and you're working in a company, we've got a program called Smart Dollar. Smart Dollar is an opportunity for people to be able to kind of walk through financial peace in a corporate environment. It's taught by myself, Dave Ramsey, as well as Rachel, and it really gives people an understanding of what to do.

And so many people are so distracted with money issues and money frustration, it's really important for us to have a plan. And so talk to your company about Smart Dollar. It's a great opportunity for people to be able to take control of money. And guess what? If you don't have money stress, you're able to focus on your actual job and you actually perform better. It's a great opportunity. Well, listen, I have absolutely enjoyed the opportunity to sit in and fill in for Dave

to be able to do the debt-free scream. I tell you, I'm absolutely blown away. And if you're out there and you're working the debt-free scream, I tell you, I'm absolutely blown away. And if you're out there and you're working your debt-free journey, I want you to make sure that you reach out to us. We'd love to be able to see you here in studio and have an opportunity to talk to you. Well, I want to thank James Childs, a producer. I want to thank all of you for tuning in and listening in. I want to thank Amanda for call screening and helping me out. And it has been an absolute pleasure for all of you to be able to tune in

and to hear the debt-free scream and the opportunity to grow forward. This has been The Dave Ramsey Show. Did you know you can now listen to The Dave Ramsey Show on Pandora and Spotify? For all the ways to watch and listen, check out our showcase at DaveRamsey.com slash show.