The Ramsey Show - App - How Do I Pay Off Three Mortgages? (Hour 3)

Episode Date: August 24, 2020

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🎵 Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, broadcasting from the Dollar Car Rental Studios, it's the Dave 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. Chris Hogan, Ramsey personality, is my co-host today here on the air. Open phones at 888-825-5225. That's 888-825-5225. Spring in Bloomington, Indiana starts off this hour.

Hi, Spring. How are you? Oh, great. How are you? Better than I deserve. What's up? Wonderful. Well, Spring. How are you? All right. How are you? Better than I deserve. What's up? Wonderful. Well, I'm on baby step one.

I've just had the second class of FPU, and I'm looking ahead at the debt snowball. And I know you say to pay off all debt, but the mortgage. But I'm looking at the mortgage, and it's right about the same amount as my student loans and by the time i get to the student loans the mortgage is going to be less and i'm thinking that i'm actually going to be able to get out of debt faster if i tackle the mortgage before the student loans and um then be able to use that mortgage payment to slam on the student loan nope nope you're thinking got you where you are. I'm not, no.

I'm sorry. That was too easy. It was an underhand pitch, darling. I do need to increase my income, and I'm working on that. Okay, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop. How much debt do you have on your student loan? It is, hang on a second here, just over $39,000, just under $40,000. Gotcha. And how much other debt do you have not counting your house?

I've got, well, I'm catching up on my estimated taxes for 2020. That's my number one goal right now. I have a 2019 tax bill of $3,811. I have a charge off MasterCard that I've been paying every month for four years, which is $14,560. And then I have the student loans. And you said the student loan was how much again? Just under $40,000. Okay. So, all right. So $18,000. You have $58,000 in debt, not counting your house.

And what is your income? My net business income right now projected is, where did that number come off to? Hmm? I last calculated my projected net business income for the year end of June, and that was $35,786.56. Mm-hmm. And that's pre-tax. Okay.

And so that's what you make a year? Yes. Okay. And you said you're doing something to get your income up, right? I'm working on that. I need to get a few pieces of equipment so I can start online tutoring. I have an MS in language education, which I'm not using at the moment. And I know there's a lot of online tutoring available and I've got lots of experience. That's great. Yeah. How much do you owe on the mortgage, Spring? It is just under

$45,000 and it's actually in my late father's name. Okay. Okay. There's a lot of reasons in this situation to work the system exactly the way you've been taught. And the good news is, and I'm proud of you, you're paying attention. I poked and phoned at you a minute ago, but you're paying attention now. You're paying attention. You're thinking. And before, things were just happening to you, and now you're happening to them. And that's a big sign, isn't it, Chris? It really is.

And you're thinking. But here's the other side of that. You want to make sure that you're following a recipe that's going to help you cook something you want. Right. And these baby steps, young lady, are going to lead you in that direction. So don't overthink it. Don't add anything to the recipe. This is one you want

to follow to a T. So as you get your income up and you get on a budget, you're going to feel like you got a raise from just doing the budget. The stuff you're learning. I've been doing the every dollar. Boy, that's been a help. Yeah, good. I'm glad. And so that and then what's going to happen is you're going to reach over and pay that $4,000 tax bill, the $3,800 tax bill, be done with it. And then you're going to reach over and get rid of this MasterCard. It's been hanging over your head for a long time. When you've just done those two things, you're going to feel like a new person. Mm-hmm.

Aren't you? Yes. I'm starting to feel like a new person anyway. This has been a subject that has plagued you for a long time. Oh, gosh. Five years ago was it was dreadful. Yeah. And for the first time in your life, you're going to see a hope about this, a light at the end of the tunnel that's not an oncoming train.

And by the time you've knocked out those two things, that student loan is going to be in your crosshairs, and you're never going to blink. And you need to go ahead and knock it out because it's consumer debt, number one. Number two, it's in your name. The other debt is not in your name right and we need to clear it because it's not going to go away the problem with a student loan is emotionally it looks like such a large mountain that i don't think i can move it but you know what when you move a dump truck load a day you look up and the whole mountain's gone. Well, true. And you're going to get there. And then you're going to reach over.

And the good news is you don't have much of a mortgage, and you'll be able to reach over and knock out baby step six later without any effort at all because you're going to be in such a zone by then, again, having power over a subject that has controlled you, and instead you're going to be controlling it. You're going to see a whole different side of yourself. You're going to end up making more money than you've ever made, and you're going to end up with a sense of confidence that you've never had when you finish this. I promise you. I've worked with people just exactly like you.

The language you're using, the way you're talking about this, the way I look down, I see a bad IRS. I see an old MasterCard. These tell me it's been going on a while. And so I'm reading into the clues about your life that you gave me. And I just see you're going to, 18 months from now, you're going to be a completely different person. A whole different spot. And, Spring, I'm going to tell you, another thing a person like you needs, you are motivated. I hear the energy in your voice, but you still need community.

I'm going to encourage you to hop over into Ramsey Plus so you can get connected. You're in there with other like-minded people. You're going to be able to cheer other people on, but at the same time, get your own motivation to help you go faster. So hop over in there. Be connected with people that are at the same time get your own motivation to help you go faster so hop over in there be connected with people that are speaking the same language and i'm telling you you won't regret it yeah it's it's a good thing i'm glad you're in financial peace university and it's i'm glad it's helping you i'm excited for you and so um chris is right we you know the recipe this is how you make gumbo this is how you make a chocolate cake and if you want a good one you just take the you know the the chef who's been in the kitchen that's

right for decades knows how to do it and you follow that recipe and after you've been cooking it for years if you want to change it up right that's fine yeah but right now you suck at this so go use the recipe learn it if i'm gonna make biscuits i suck at making biscuits i gotta get a recipe out and i gotta follow instructions yes or i'm not gonna get biscuits i'm gonna get donuts and you know it's what happens i'm not gonna get chocolate cake i'll get a dadgum coconut cake or something now my wife has been cooking for years and is a world class cook yes and so she says i just threw this together and I just made this up. Well, you can do that after you've been doing it a long time.

That's right. But the first time you do it, like I said, I love that analogy, Chris. You ought to follow the directions. Follow the instructions. They won't steer you wrong. That's how it works. This is the Dave Ramsey Show. You know what I've learned after talking to so many people who have been victims of ID theft? They feel violated and they have a sense of fear and intrusion.

It can be overwhelming. It's scary and infuriating at the same time. People question your character. You try to figure out how it happened and you worry it's going to happen again. Then you have to deal with cleaning up the mess. Bill collectors, credit bureaus, even the police just make the nightmare worse. And trust me, ID theft is not going away. That's why I personally worked with Zander Insurance to develop an ID theft plan that provides the best protection and value.

Smart strategies to help reduce your risk so you don't feel so helpless, along with taking over all the work if you do become a victim. And without wasting your money on gimmicks or things you can easily do for yourself. Go to Zander.com or call 800-356-4282. Do not wait until it's too late and you have to go through this nightmare on your own. Go to Zander.com. Since 1994, we've been teaching Financial Peace University. Now, over 6 million, almost 7 million people have been through the classes. They've been taught at 50,000 churches across America, as well as a lot of other locations as we've done it. The majority of the time, the vast majority of those classes were led, staffed by a volunteer coordinator

who likes to coordinate the class, meaning that they didn't teach the class. We taught the class on video, me and Chris Hogan, who's my co-host today, Rachel Cruz, and now anthony o'neill being added to the videos as well and so we that's who taught financial peace university but the coordinators were the ones that were there to answer questions and encourage people and to cause the class to happen facilitate it and we have literally had over 20,000 people coordinate classes over the years. At any given time, there's anywhere from 5,000 to 12,000 doing it. And so we decided to just say, these folks, to just say out loud what we've always believed in, these folks are heroes.

When you coordinate a class for some group of people, you have a front row seat to them changing their lives. And you also are causing them to be in a position to deal with this person in their mirror to change their lives. And it's just incredible. It's absolutely incredible. So we want to take a little time this week and just say thank you and honor several of our coordinators. Karen Whitehead in Danielson, Connecticut, is a Financial Peace University coordinator. She's on the line.

Hey, Karen, how are you? Oh, if I were any better, I'd be twins. I hear you. I love it. It is an honor to talk to both you and Chris today. Well, you too. Thank you for taking your time to do it. How long have you been coordinating Financial Peace University classes? I've been listening. I mean, I've been leading since 2015. Okay. Wow. So over five years then? Yes. And the way I got started is I was listening to the show when I was driving,

and I would hear all these debt-free screams, and they'd really get to me. And then you guys had a promo going on that if you led a class, you could go through it for free. And since free is my second language, I decided to sign up. I'm going to be a coordinator. Yay! Okay. Yeah. And my first class had one couple in

it and prior to class they were out in their car arguing and i thought my god what did i get myself into so and did they stick all the way through they stuck all the way through and to this day we are great friends so and they're still knocking out slowly but surely. That's great. Very cool. Very cool. Is that the number one member story out of all the five years, or have you got others? Oh, goodness, no. I have some great stories.

You know, I have a couple who joined the class in 2017 with, I'm sorry, $5,000 in debt. And they emailed me now. They're at $45,591.32. And he said during that time they lost their job and they're currently cash flowing their new baby, which is due at the end of next week. So their target to be debt-free by next September. But this past spring was a couple that really blew me away.

They are out in Kansas, and they are absolutely crushing it. They started in May with $168,535, and as of last week, they're down to $81,160. Wow. At this rate, they'll be debt-free, house and and all by next summer, and I'm super excited for them. That's very cool. So you're in Connecticut. They're in Kansas. That means you're being a virtual coordinator, which all of our classes just about have gone to virtual during COVID,

and we're launching a bunch of new virtual classes here in the fall. So how's the virtual thing going? Oh, I absolutely love it because, like you said, I'm in Connecticut. And in my last series of classes, I had people from Florida, New York, Ohio, Indiana, South Carolina, Kansas, North Dakota, Michigan, Nebraska, and even a young lady from Germany. And it was great. They are so engaged. It's great because there's so much flexibility, and I just love to see the excitement. I've been fortunate in getting some great people to call in as guest speakers, and it's really fantastic. I absolutely love it.

I have four classes scheduled to start in September. Okay, cool. Chris, were you a guest speaker? No, she didn't call me. Karen didn't call me. And I just don't have your phone number. Here, I'll give it to you. You ready?

Write this down. Karen, I know there are tons of benefits to being a coordinator. Having worked with them and trained them and trained coaches for years. But let the people out there know, what are some of the benefits you feel from being a coordinator? It's, you know, it's the gratification of seeing the changes happen. Literally around, you know, at week one, you see the fear and the terror in their eyes and the anxiety.

And by week three, it magically turns to hope and excitement. And it is just fantastic to see that. And if you're lucky, you get a gazelle intense couple that just like lights the class on fire. So, well, I can tell you this. It's not magic that it turns to hope. It's due to people like you reaching out and guiding them and giving them God's word on how this money stuff works.

So thank you so much, Karen, for all that you do to help people. Absolutely. Thank you, Karen. We really, really, really appreciate you. You're incredible. Very well done. So 16 million people are out of work right now. They're not sure how they're going to make ends meet.

A lot of people that have been scared financially, scared sober, so to speak, are ready to say never again. Maybe they didn't lose their job, but maybe this COVID thing just woke them up, and they say, you know what? I don't like being vulnerable because I'm in debt, and I don't have any money. I don't want to be vulnerable anymore. And so they're scared sober, financially scared sober. And they're ready to say never again. As a community, as a nation, we can give people hope when they need it the most. And if you're looking for a way to help people to get control during these crazy times,

you can lead a virtual Financial Peace University class. You can do it like Karen did from the comfort of her home and get the mix of people and the different experiences people are having from all over the nation built into the class. That's such a cool virtual class. It really is. She named every state out there, man. That's pretty amazing. And if you want to do this, you can help people wake up to the truth about what's going on with their money. It is really easy to get started.

We've been doing this a long time. We've not been doing the virtual thing a long time, but we're getting to be experts on it very quickly. I can tell you that. And, of course, we do the teaching on the videos, and they're broadcast for you online so that you can coordinate with your class. It works perfectly. And we give you everything to be able to do this with confidence. And you get a one-year membership, like Karen was talking about, to Ramsey Plus for free. And like she said, that's her favorite word.

So if you want to go through Ramsey Plus, which includes the every dollar upgrade, the sync with your bank, the sync with your spouse. It includes the Baby Step Tracker. It includes all the communities. This whole A-plus product called Ramsey Plus includes all the content. Of course, Financial Peace University is in there. You want to get all that free for one year, just be a virtual coordinator. And all you got to do is help folks get hope. The you do this is you text the word unity to 33 789

that's one word unity u-n-i-t-y text it to 33 789 and uh get started on being a virtual coordinator we have a lot of people wanting to go through the class right now, and obviously a lot of churches are not holding classes right now, and so we're working with the ones that want to, and otherwise we're setting up these virtual classes to make sure you guys get helped because there's a whole bunch of you. You know the saying, when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. Well, Chris and I have appeared. Here we are.

You're ready, and listen to me. You do not need to be all the way through the, the teacher will appear. Well, Chris and I have appeared. Here we are. You're ready. And listen to me. You do not need to be all the way through the baby steps to help people. Sign up and help right now, right where you are. Text UNITY to 33789. You can go through Ramsey Plus for a year free for being a virtual coordinator for Financial Peace University. This is the Dave Ramsey personality is my co-host today here on the air. Jeremy and Kelly are with us in Minneapolis, Minnesota to do their debt-free scream.

Hey, guys, how are you? Hey, Dave. Hey, Dave, doing good. Awesome. Welcome, welcome. So how much have you paid off? We paid off $77,000. Cool. How long did this take you? It took us 15 months.

Neat. And your range of income during that time? $140,000 to $160,000. $140,000 to $160,000. Very cool. What do you guys do for a living? So I'm an area fleet director. I kind of work in the fleet world. And I am a homeschool mom to our three kids. And in that time, I had a side hustle as a nanny for about a year. Ah, okay, cool.

Very cool. What kind of debt was the $77,000? Oh, we had everything. We had credit cards. We had a personal loan. We had student loans and two-car loans. Awesome. You were normal. Normal. Very normal. We had a personal loan. We had student loans and two-car loans. You were normal.

Normal. Very normal. What happened 15 months ago that lit your fuse? I was sick and tired of being sick and tired of being, you know, making that sort of money and being at a point where I still feel like living paycheck to paycheck and just not getting ahead, right? I mean, I got a good job, make good money, but just I lack the discipline. I'm clearly the spender in the family, and we had to rein that in a little bit and kind of get on a better budget. So was there a moment, a thing that happened that you can point to and say, that's when we said this is enough? And we moved into our new property, and, you know, I got a nice hobby farm out here and a bunch of stuff I wanted to do and just couldn't do it because not enough money going around

because we just weren't disciplined and staying focused on the important things. So I have a feeling Kelly was handling the checkbook at that moment. You know, Dave. Telepathy is amazing, Eugene. So Kelly, tell us what happened. Well, you know, I have always been on your plan, Dave, and every time I would get something paid down a little bit, it would just get racked right back up, and we just

were not on the same page, and until that happened, we just weren't making any progress, and so when something in him finally clicked and said, okay, I'm ready to do this. I said, okay, let's do it. And so FPU came around at our church. And so we signed up right away and went through the class. We just stayed focused for that 15 months. And I mean, we were listening to podcasts every single day. I mean, and we were reading all the books and just trying to stay motivated, stay disciplined. And finally, we were able to cross over into baby step three. And just two weeks after we did that, we coordinated our first class at our church. Wow.

What church do you go to? We go to River Valley. Oh, okay. Great. Very cool. So, Jeremy, what really happened to make you stick to it this time? Well, first off was what I called the realistic budget. We upped my personal money so I could feel like I wasn't constricted on saying no. And honestly, Kelly and I that year, we sat down and, you know, and, and honestly kind of more of, you know, Kelly and I, that year we sat down and really started doing just even for the first time marriage goals

as, as, as a married couple for the first time we've been married 15 years and we just haven't been aligned like that. So sitting down there and really going, this is what we're chasing. This is what we're going after. Um, you know, and, and reading that, you know, monk and the merchant book really kind of laid it on me that felt the Lord putting on my heart that, uh, to be that merchant, right. You know, and so, uh, I had to get this straight. So that's, that's probably what a lot of it was to kind of kick me in gear. That's good, buddy. That is very, very good. Agreed. And proud of you for being aware enough to hear it, but then to follow it.

And Kelly, you sound like a serious cheerleader. Who in your family, did you all, were you handed this information? How did you hear about Financial Peace? Oh, gosh. We had heard about Dave years ago. And again, we just, you know, trying to pay off as much as we could, and then it would go right back up, and it was just kind of a cycle for the last, you know, 10 years probably.

Right. So what do you guys now tell people the key to getting out of debt is? Oh, I think, like Jeremy said, the realistic budget. There were so many times, you know, we've had a budget forever, but every month we were going over budget and having to, you know, move money. Well, both of you on the budget. Well, yeah, both of us on there and stay, you know, and again, staying motivated, right? I mean, it's, you know, the things you focus on is what you're going to, you know,

you're going to achieve and stay across the finish line. So, again, staying, you know, I've read your legacy book three times now. Wow. And kind of going through that and obviously, like Kelly said, listening to your podcast and staying motivated. And those are all big things. But one part, too, Chris, on your cheerleader part, I think the kids as well as us, right?

I mean, I can't really pinpoint another couple, but, I mean, we were in it to win it, and our kids were with us every step of the way. We walked through and let them know and educated them on every, you know, where we're at in the journey, and they were just phenomenal, right? What age are they? We got a 7, a 10, and a 13-year-old. And they came down to start asking, well, what would Dave Ramsey do? Whoa!

Dave approached. There's always that. Wow. That's funny. I love it. They sacrificed all the things that they wanted to do, too. We didn't go out to eat as a family. We didn't take vacations.

All the fun things that they wanted to be able to do, it was, well, next year when we were debt-free. And so conversations, you know, when they wanted to do something, conversations started, Mom, when we were debt-free, can we fill in the blank? And so they knew that that just had to come first. That's good. Fantastic, you guys. And it's only 15 months. That's right.

You know, that's a lot, but it's not. Right. Not in the scope of their life or your life. That's right. And yet they have this marked in their memories for the rest of their lives, that time that our family got out of debt. Very cool. I'm proud of you guys.

Well done. Very well done. Thank you. We've got a copy of uh chris's book you probably already have it it sounds like you read everything but uh everyday millionaires because that's definitely the next chapter in your story without a doubt very well done that in the legacy journey that's a good one-two punch right there for the the baby steps four through seven and even seven and beyond. So very cool stuff.

All right. Are the kiddos there to scream with you? They're here. They're here. All right. Get everybody gathered around. Jeremy and Kelly in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Seventy-seven thousand paid off in 15 months, making 140 to 160.

Count it down. Let's hear a debt-free scream. Three, two, one. We can't do it. Yeah. Whoa, that was some intensity. I love it. Oh, the kids, they meant it.

When the kiddos say, when we're debt-free, can we, dot, dot, dot, that's when the family has changed their lives. That's right. It became not an us versus them, meaning parents versus kids, but us together versus it. And that is the goal and the destination that you're striving for. And parents out there listening, that's how you do it. Include them. Have age-appropriate conversations, but let them know the why behind this thing. And young people will follow your lead.

They will follow it. They are not distressed to find out that their parents have made a mistake no they are distressed when their parents don't have the gumption to fix it that's right that's right that's what brings that's what brings stress to kiddos now again like you said age appropriately we don't want to scare some three-year-old to death that they're going to be sent to the salt mines but the uh but you know the kids that age they can understand a lot of stuff and go look we made a mistake here and we're fixing it as a family that's right we're going to get out of this so that we never go back and then you're

never going to go in ever and you're learning this lesson while you're still here at home so you don't ever go out there and do stupid like that. It's a life lesson. They got a chance to learn it. Very cool stuff. Very well done. Love it, love it, love it. This is the Dave Ramsey Show. Thank you. Our scripture of the day, 1 Peter 4, 12 and 13. Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.

Bruce Lee said, Absorb what is useful, discard what is not, add what is uniquely your own. Open phones this hour here on the Dave Ramsey Show at 888-825-5225. Chris Hogan, Ramsey personality, is my co-host this hour. Richard is with us in Richmond, Virginia. Hi, Richard. Welcome to the show. Hi, Dave. Hi, Chris.

Thank you for taking my call today. Sure. What's up? I'm on step six, and I have to figure out how to do step six. And my current situation is that I have three properties. One property was purchased as a college investment while my children were going to college. And that was basically generating enough income to pay for itself. The second one is my primary residence. And then the third residence is the retirement home that I want to live in approximately six years from now. And then the third residence is the retirement home that I want

to live in approximately six years from now. What are the balances on each? Yeah. So balances are approximately $155,000 on the one that's an investment property. The second one is about $220,000 on my primary residence, and then the retirement home is about another $240,000 on those. All of them have at least $60,000 to $70,000 of unrealized equity from valuation, and my payment's down on those. What's your household income? Approximately $200,000, $210,000. And what are you doing with the retirement property?

Is it sitting empty? I go to it on the weekends. It's a lake home. Okay, okay. All right. So my question is... How old are you? Okay, I'm 53.

I want to retire in six years. Okay. are you okay i'm 53 i want to retire in six years okay and making 240 you need to pay off 650 grand right no 575 okay yeah yeah i missed it i'm sorry i picked up one okay all right and so how can you do that in six years i think so and so the question is that in six years? I think so. And so the question is that in 24 months, I could probably pay off the college town townhouse. And once I'm done with that, I can net probably $1,500 a month in that property every single month into perpetuity. I can then take that and put that down on my primary residence.

And within the next three to four years, I would then say I could pay that one off again. And then I can then take it. So I can pay off all three homes in six years. My question is, is it smart for me to keep those rental properties and make approximately $3,000 to $3,500 a month, and the valuation is about $500,000 for the two of them, maybe $600,000 in the next five years. Yeah, the college property is giving you a good ROI. The other property is not going to give you a good ROI, it sounds like. I mean, $36,000 a year on $400,000 worth of assets?

Yeah. I don't think it's great. No, it's not. The home that your primary probably needs to go away and you buy some rentals that have better ROIs when you move out of it. At the end of the story, but the

beginning of the story is how do we get these paid off? And I don't think there's a bad order here. I generally say when they're pretty close, i like getting my primary paid off but the problem is your primary is confused here you know my primary is because i'm a work from home type person too i'm thinking that right now i could probably rent it for two thousand dollars a month and my mortgage payment's about eleven hundred so after taxes and

yeah that's that's not a that Yeah, that's not a play. The play is to get them all paid off, like you said. The six-year goal, just what's the most efficient way to get them all paid off is the thing. And there's not a super efficient way, but you're going to be in great shape. So there's not a bad play here. It's just a matter of which one you want to knock off first. And I'm with you. I might do the small one. Okay. One other question then. I'm also making,

I work for a company that does stock, employee stock purchase. I make 15% on that automatically. Everybody does. That's not different. Everybody does. Yeah, but it's decent. I mean, it's okay. Should I just be investing in that and taking it out? But the stock is also going up, so I'm doing a little bit better than most. Maybe. But should I be taking that money out and then making the payment onto the house after that?

I would take it out instantaneously and make the payment on the house after that. I wouldn't let it sit. Because if you'll look at your company, I don't like the volatility of single stocks. If you look at your company, you're probably going to see a 15% move up and down and sideways during a 12-month period of time. Look at your 12-month high, 12-month low. 15% isn't enough to cover that.

Correct. We're a better growth pattern, but that's... Yeah, but that's overall, and that doesn't follow COVID and everything else. So I'm simply not playing that game while I'm trying to do this other. I mean, if you want to cash it in and make 15 on it the same day, that's fine. Go ahead and do that. But play in single stocks while we're playing get out of debt on the mortgages,

not doing both simultaneously. No, it really wasn't. And, Richard, I'll tell you this. The only other thing that will help you get this done in six years is if you stick to the plan and you don't acquire anything else in this time. Yeah, you got to stop this. You got real estate-itis. And so you're grabbing at stuff. And so I want you to be clear that, hey, you're in cleanup mode over the next six years.

So you're going to have to say no to a lot of stuff if you're serious about this. Yeah. The only income-producing thing in the whole mess right now is the college property, or I would have dumped it, and nothing else on this is dumpable, because there's no emergency. So I think you've got a good plan. I'm sticking with your plan. So I'm confirming what your suspicions were.

But, you know, if you decide to do it in a different order we wouldn't call it dumb just be done in six years that's the trick jacobs in jacksonville florida hi jacob welcome to the dave ramsey show hey david chris thanks for taking my call sure what's up um so i love investing and i found that I enjoy helping others understand their finances and how it relates to their overall well-being. I'm looking to become a financial advisor in the future, but after getting my bachelor's, I'm currently a junior right now in college, but after getting my bachelor's, do you think it's worth it to get a CFP degree, or would I be okay without it?

Jacob, I would tell you, my friend, number one, I love that you're a junior and you're already thinking ahead like you are. That's fantastic. Here's what I would tell you. Getting the CFP is a route. That's a path. But it depends on what area niche you're wanting to do. I would suggest that you get connected with some people that are CFPs right now in the area that you're in. Take them to lunch. Sit down and talk with them a little bit.

Get some more knowledge about what it is they do in their day-to-day operations. And I would do the same thing in the banking side or in just some multiple areas that begin to give you this understanding of money. And that way you can kind of figure out what path you want to go down. Yeah, that's a really good suggestion. Yeah. So, Jacob, if you wanted to, for instance, be a financial advisor with one of our SmartVestor pros, is the CFP a prerequisite to doing that?

No. Lots of really good financial advisors without a CFP. I don't have one. Chris has a master's degree in finance. I don't have that either. And yet I've learned and I know what I'm doing and I'm knowledgeable in all those areas. The field of study or the coursework in the CFP is very strenuous and very good. It is an excellent designation to get because the knowledge that you'll gain while you're

getting it. The downside is that while it's very strenuous, it's a bit legalistic in that the way they teach it is as if there is, it doesn't have enough critical thinking skills to think on your own to suit me. So I know some CFPs that are certified financial Pharisees instead of certified financial planners. And I know some CFPs that are excellent at what they do. So the CFP is like any other piece of education. You're going to gather the knowledge to assist you in doing your job.

Can you do the job without it? Yes. Will it assist you? Yes. Does it make you Superman? No. Do you have all the answers because you got one? No.

So that's a good summation of it. But it is a great field of study. That puts us out of the Dave Ramsey Show in the books. We'll be back with you before you know it. In the meantime, remember, there's ultimately only one way to financial peace, and that's to walk daily with the Prince of Peace, Christ Jesus. This is James Childs, producer of The Dave Ramsey Show. On your smart speaker, you can add our skill by saying, Alexa, open the Ramsey Network skill.

From there, you can listen to all our shows. Ask Dave money questions like, how do I invest my money? Or what is the debt snowball? Find out more at DaveRamsey.com.