The Ramsey Show - App - My Ex Bought My Son a New Car Right After I Bought Him a Used One (Hour 2)

Episode Date: September 3, 2021

Debt, Budgeting, Savings, Relationships Sign Up for a FREE trial of Ramsey+ TODAY: https://bit.ly/3rZTUAx Tools to get you started:  Debt Calculator: https://bit.ly/2Q64HME Insurance Coverage Checkup: https://bit.ly/3sXwUn5 Complete Guide to Budgeting: https://bit.ly/3utmVXi Check out more Ramsey Network podcasts: https://bit.ly/3fHhbVE

Thank you. Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, broadcast from the Dollar Car Rental Studio, this is The Ramsey Show, where America hangs out to have a conversation about your money, your life, your business, your relationships, everything you can think of and more. about your money, your life, your business, your relationships, everything you can think of and more. Give us a call at 888-825-5225.

I'm John Deloney, joined here with my good friend and best-selling author and author of the soon-to-be-released rock star book, Take Back Your Time, Christy Wright. And we are taking your calls on pretty much anything you can come up with, 888-825-5225. Christy, how and we are taking your calls on pretty much anything you can come up with, 888-825-5225. Christy, how are we doing? Great. It's Friday. I'm telling you, I love hosting on Fridays because everybody's in a good mood, getting

ready for the weekend. I love it. That makes sense. What are you doing this weekend? I don't know. Okay. That's kind of a good feeling. I mean, not having any plans, that's kind of nice.

It's like, okay, let's just see what happens. I think we've got plans. I'm not that far. I need to get through this. Yeah, that's how you roll. You and I live differently. We do. What are you doing this weekend?

Taking the boys to a football game tonight and then going to the lake tomorrow. It's our last lake weekend, so got to live it up. And then you're going to shut it down? And then we're going to shut it down. I will probably do some mowing tomorrow. So when I'm out there mowing, I will think of the Wright family. They're having a good time. It should be a blast.

888-825-5225. Give us a shout, and we look forward to talking to you. Let's go to Dylan in Indianapolis, Indiana. Hey, Dylan, what's going on, brother? So a few months ago, I bought my first car for $5,900 all cash, and I was wondering if it would now be a good choice to buy a second car, or a new car, trade in that one, because the first car, it's starting to appear that it might have problems with rust. It could have been in a flood, and I don't know if it would be a good starting to appear that I might have problems with rust. It could have been in a flood. And I don't know if it would be a good choice to do that. How old are you, man?

17. 17. How'd you come up with $5,900 to buy your first car with cash? Part-time jobs over a couple years. Good for you, man. Dude, you are awesome, Gavin. Way to go, man. I don't think I could have kept $59. Dylan. you, man. Dude, you are awesome, Gavin. Way to go, man. I don't think I could have kept $59.

Dylan. Oh, Dylan. I'm sorry. Yeah, Dylan. I'm not good at reading, Dylan. My job actually is to keep him on track, Dylan. I'm here for you. Yeah, that's a hard job.

So, Dylan, you bought a car, and what makes you think it was in a flood? Are you having buyer's remorse? Did you buy a car, and now all of a sudden you don't like it tell me what's going on i still i still love the car and if i were to get a new car it would just be a newer version of it it's a honda civic okay and i like it do you have the money um if i were to sell the car the price of it right now is around $8,000, and I would look to buy a car for between $10,000 and $11,000, so add about $2,000, $3,000 onto what I sell this for. Do you have it, though? Yes. Do you have that cash?

Yes. Yeah, I don't have a problem if you're selling your car and buying a new car with cash. Yeah, yeah. I wouldn't keep two cars around, and I would not – I wouldn't be dishonest in your sale, right? I would – if you think there's a problem with it, if you think there's a challenge with it, I'd have it go get looked out by a certified mechanic and not just pass your purchasing decision on to somebody else. Obviously, you want to do everything above board. I don't have a problem with that. No, you're paying in cash. I mean, here's the thing, Dylan.

You're asking the right questions. Most 17-year-olds are not asking that question. You're paying for it in cash. It's great. Yeah, do it. Absolutely. Good for you, man. No parent, Christy, talking to us, right?

No parent ever wants their child to experience the panic of being unprepared for an emergency. But teaching your teens how to be smart with money can feel like a big job. Lucky for you, we've got your back. With our digital self-study courses, you can rest assured that your teen will know the right way to handle money no matter what curveballs life may throw at them down the road. And the best part? No instructor needed. If your teen has a tablet

or a computer, they're all set. You know what? That sounds like music to a parent's ears right now. No instructor needed, especially those who are still having to do school from home. Parents, text SELFSTUDY to 33789.

That's SELFSTUDY to 33789 to learn more about all of the different courses we have available for your middle or high schooler. Very cool. So many of you say, I wish I knew this when I was younger. Here's your chance. Pass it on.

When did you learn about money? When I was up to my eyeballs in debt in my mid-20s and I realized something had to change. I mean, I truly was not taught yeah money debt say I mean I guess like you know in passing but no one ever sat me down and said like here's what this really is and so I was the typical sign up for a free t-shirt get a credit card college student and so I got myself into a mess when I was in my early 20s but it was like by degrees I didn't oh the minimum payment's $24. It's literally your statistic.

And then in the middle of my 20s, I remember there was a month I had to call my mom and ask her to put money in my bank account. And I was so humiliated because I was a 24-year-old woman and I couldn't support myself. I wasn't independent. I value independence.

I wanted to be financially independent. And it was that moment that I was like, something needs to change. Once I finally finally faced my bills i wrote it all out on my debts and this was even before i knew dave ramsey i was like i just have to get rid of this and then i got the book and got on the plan and all the stuff but um i literally learned like so many uh so many college students so many americans the hard way by like oh man this sucks i work really hard and i still can't make my payments yeah i remember graduating from college i remember in high school a guy at my local church stood up and said um

i just got laid off and people were talking about it yeah but i want you and i'm okay i've started doing this thing and this was this is when financial peace was in its infancy. And I remember that fast forward, six, seven years later, I took my first big job after college making great money. And I ended that first year making great money in more debt than when I started, just because I got in the habit of not saying no.

And I remember going, what in the, how did that happen? Well, you made a really good point though, because I don't want people to miss this. You were talking about this earlier um today and that is when we get a promotion when we get a raise we upgrade our lifestyle even if even if we have debt so like in your example i'm making great money and i ended up in more debt than i was in because we think oh

wow i got a new job or oh i got a new raise i'm gonna go get a nicer car get a nicer house buy this stuff because i deserve it but the truth is if're in debt, you don't own any of that stuff. You owe on all of it. You're actually in the red. It was getting redder by the day. Yeah, yeah. We've got to change the mindset that, oh, I deserve it or I need to upgrade my lifestyle. Matt and I, from the time that we moved in our house, we were newly married, for any raise that we've gotten, he's had different job changes,

I've had different good years and lower years, whatever, we haven't upgraded our lifestyle. And so the margin just increases, which gives you again power to invest, to give, to make choices about where you send your kids to school, Conley's in therapy, and I can afford that. And it's simply because

we've maintained the margin. But you have to create it. That means that when you get a raise, you don't upgrade your lifestyle. And that can be because we've maintained the margin, but you have to create it. That means that when you get a raise, you don't upgrade your lifestyle. And that can be hard. It takes discipline, but it's going to give you power and control. I think my wife is wondering why I think we're, we keep downshifting our lifestyle every time. She's like, John, please, that car, let's don't drive horses to work anymore. Can we get a car? That's so cool. Yeah. If you can hang can hang tight right it just gives you so much freedom in your life that's incredible 888-825-5225 give us a shout we are here i'm john deloney joined with christy wright on the ramsey show Hey, y'all. I'm Christi Wright. Listen, when you're tired and not getting enough sleep,

your health and happiness suffers. That's why I'm a huge fan of Glorify, the number one daily worship and well-being app. This app has calming meditations and peaceful sleep music so you can finally push pause and get some rest. Give Glorify a try. Download the Glorify app and get 50% off their full library when you use the code RAMSEY. That's the code RAMSEY. That's the code RAMSEY. 888-825-5225. I'm John Deloney, joined here by Christy Wright.

Let's go out to Gavin in Cleveland, Ohio. Hey, Gavin, what's going on? Hey, guys, how are you? Outstanding, guys. How are you? Outstanding, brother. How are you? I'm doing very well. Very cool. What can we do for you? I'm calling to ask about my situation. So

me and my wife, we just got married recently, and we have about $36,000 together in student loans, but I also got a truck last year, and that's about $32,000. So I was thinking about selling it because I was looking at the baby steps, and I'm thinking that if I sell the truck, I should be able to pay everything off and be debt-free within the next two years. How much do you make, man?

I make about $2,300 a month after tax. You make $2,300 a month after tax. You have a $32,000 truck. Yeah, exactly. It was like what you guys were talking about earlier, upgrading your lifestyle after I get a raise and stuff. I mean, I couldn't make the – it was just because I could make the payment. I was in a small car, and I should have paid it off before I knew any better.

Oh, yeah. Hey, you and everybody else, Gavin. Listen, brother. It's so normal. I've done the same thing. Hey, was it a little, little car? Yeah. I was driving a Chevy Cruze I had been in for the last four or five years. Dude, I had an 88 Tercel EZ Hatchback.

Same. It's like a Fred Flintstone car, man. And it felt so good getting that big truck, didn't it? It did. It felt great. What's that truck payment every month? The payments were $640 a month. I refinanced it, but then, again, stumbled upon uh the baby steps and everything and it

seems like it's just a smarter idea to sell it especially with the market now yeah and then um you know maybe put in a little bit more or you know maybe get a smaller personal loan because i have to drive a lot for work because i'm in the construction trade so i'm all over Cleveland Ohio um no do you have any cash yeah do you have any cash no Gavin? Yeah, do you have any cash? No, we have the cash saved just for the baby step number one, but not for the extra money for the car. I mean, I would get some money

back from the truck from selling it, though. Oh, you would? Yeah, but maybe about $2,000 or $3,000. Then I would use that to get you a small truck. We're not going to take out any more loans.

Gavin, you're going to be the guy rolling up to the job site, and people are going to look at you like you've got four eyes. Okay? No, that's fine. You're going to sell this truck before the day is over, or at least before the weekend is over, and you're going to go buy a $2,000 or $3,000 car, a $2,000 or $3,000 truck,

and you're going to suck it up, and you're going to save that money. You're going to get that a $2,000 or $3,000 car, $2,000, $3,000 truck, and you're going to suck it up, and you're going to save that money. You're going to get that $36,000 paid off as quickly as possible, and this is going to be your stupid tax when you're driving this car around. And it's going to – man, you are going to hustle to get this student loan paid off, right? Oh, yeah, for sure. I picked up a part-time job on the weekends, too, so I should be making 600 bucks a month. Excellent, excellent, excellent. Go get it, go get it, go get it. But yeah, brother, sell this truck before the weekend is over and never go into debt again.

And dude, don't go take out a small person alone and get another car. Don't do it. Don't do it. Don't upgrade. Just call it. Well, and just think about when you get rid of this payment and you have a paid for $3,000 car, that payment now goes to chipping away at that debt, and you're going to make so much more progress. Don't add to the debt when you don't have to, and you don't have to.

You don't have to. All right, let's go to Jessica in Jacksonville, Florida. Hey, Jessica, what's going on? Hey, guys. How are you guys? Great. What's up? I am calling because me and my husband actually bought a vehicle,

a Chevy Silverado, two years ago, 2019 to be exact. We finished paying it off earlier this year. We paid off $21,000 within a year and a half of having the vehicle but now my husband wants to sell it because he wants a smaller vehicle that weighs less than gas and I don't know if we should sell it or you clearly do not want to sell it do you no because actually with the truck i we worked two jobs and we were paying we were making double the payments every month and then when we saved up like about like it was about 12 000 we just paid off the truck just like that. Sure. So Jessica, this is not a math problem. This is a marriage problem. It's not a problem. It's a marriage discussion. It's not a math

problem. If you want to sell this truck and y'all decide to sell the truck, you own this thing outright, you'll probably do pretty well in the market right now. And y'all can buy a smaller car and you could probably buy two small cars and split it up. You don't want to sell this thing. Why don't you want to sell it?

Do you like driving it, or are you proud of the two of you for saving up and paying it off? I think that I'm proud of having this vehicle be the first and the last vehicle that we were going to have in a loan. And I don't know. Like, I just feel that if we sell it, then we lose everything that we paid for because we paid 21 for the truck. But when we went to a dealer, they offered 16. So I'm open to selling it, but I'm not open to just give it out for $16,000. Well, I mean, Jessica, we recommend you sell this private party, and you're going to get a lot more money than you would at a trade in a dealership, for sure. You may even get close to what you paid for it, because the market is so crazy right now with inventory being low and used car, the values are up, especially if it's in good

shape. So don't let that deter you. You just got to do a little bit more homework and research. Get really good photos. Get it cleaned up. List at private party. And then you will get more money. But I appreciate your honesty because often we will make decisions, financial decisions, based on emotional basis.

It's like, well, we work for this. It represents what we worked for, even though things have changed and you may or may not need it or want it right now. And it's like, oh, but I need to hold on to this because of what it represents for me. It's sentimental value, right? Yeah, yeah. So, I mean, you guys do what's right for you. Just like you were saying, Deloney, it's a marriage conversation and decision. But you guys have the money.

You're going to be fine financially either way. But I would recommend selling at private party to get more. So let's say you sell at private party and you come out straight across. Someone writes you a check for $21,000. Jessica, to your point, you haven't lost everything you worked for. You and your husband did something knucklehead together. You took out a loan for a truck. And then you all worked together. You worked really hard and you accomplished this cool goal. And what you did as a couple is you leveled up. You realized we can dig ourselves out of a hole that we've created for ourselves by working really hard, being on the same team, creating a goal, dumping a bunch of money into something and making it happen. So you haven't lost this thing. And if you get $21,000 and choose to roll back off and buy a $15,000 car, now you've got money to go in towards other debts and other things. I lean away from sentimentalizing, is that the right word?

Stuff. It's a car, it's a car, it's a car. And at the same time, man, I say that to act all tough, I really over-sentimentalize things. It's like, oh, but this is the time. You know what I mean? So back away from that thing. Jessica, what you all did together as a couple is great and it's not about the car.

It's about what y'all accomplished as a couple. And if you want to keep the truck, you can just tell them, hey, honey, we're not selling this thing. Yeah, you still accomplished it. Yeah.

It does not negate that at all. Delia, I'm curious because you have worked with couples for a long time. How do you help couples that are just at a standstill in a decision making about anything?

They just see it different. It's to ask the question I just did. Is this about the truck or is this about what is the feeling here? And one person has a feeling that says, it represents shame. I shouldn't have done this. I worked really hard 24 months to pay this thing off. And now it just stares at me in the driveway as a reminder, I'm an idiot. And then for somebody else, no, this thing symbolizes what we can do, right?

And so it has nothing to do with the truck. It has everything to do with the meaning we're putting on this dumb car. Yeah, we so often get people call in and they say, how do I get my spouse on board? How do I get my spouse on board? And we hear it with money, the debt snowball. We hear it with business. I'll have women call me, hey, how do I get my spouse on board with my business dream or whatever? And I just always think that's interesting because it is hard.

In marriage, you face decisions from, gosh, Matt and I were at a standstill about where to put the fence in our yard. Like the stupidest stuff all the way up to big stuff like a car or a business. And so it's hard.

So I'm just going to tell you, Matt, right now, you can fight it, brother, but you're going to end up putting that fence wherever Christy wants it. So you may as well go ahead. Not true.

He won that one. He totally won that one. Yeah. And he was right. And he was right. He won. But Christy, he lost. Hey, Matt. False. Matt won that one. He totally won that one. Yeah. He was right. And he was right. He won. But, Christy, he lost. Matt.

False. Matt, you lost. False. You've got to take a dive on that one, brother. Wherever Christy wants to fence, that's where the fence goes, right here on the Rage Show. You know, I heard a sad and touching story recently. Zander Insurance has set up a scholarship for children whose parents died without life insurance. Last year, they gave away over $165,000 to help kids avoid debt and go to college to pursue their dreams. It's touching, but also sad since it's a situation that occurs all over the country and can be avoided in so many cases.

This is the reason why I talk about Zander and term life insurance every day. It's not expensive or complicated, and it's gotten even easier with many companies no longer requiring medical exams. Zander shops and compares all the top term life plans and stays with you the whole time to make sure your family is taken care of. That's why I've used and recommended them for over 20 years. Go to Zander.com or call 800-356-4282. So I don't have to keep talking about these sad stories. This is the Ramsey Show, 888-825-5225. It's 888-825-5225. Let's go out to Tim in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Hey, Tim, what's going on? Yes, hi, how are you? Outstanding, brother. How are you? Good. I'm just looking for some advice, and I got three teenagers. My oldest is 16, youngest is 13. Can we just stop you there right now? Yeah.

How are you, man? I'm having a rough week. That's a lot of teenagers in a little bitty house, brother. Yeah. Yes, it is. All right, so 13 to 16, three teenagers. All right, go ahead. So he wants a car.

Well, we got him a car so he can go to work and school. I got him a $4,000 car Saturday because his mom wrecked the car that he was driving a couple weeks prior. Everybody's okay, just the cars totaled. So we needed to quick get a car so he could go to school and work. And then Monday, it sounds like his mom bought him a Honda Civic. We're divorced. I probably mentioned that, so we don't agree on a whole lot of stuff. So then she knew I was getting this car.

She went with me to get it, it up look at it and then monday my other kids i was dropping them off from school after work like why didn't he take my car to school it's like oh he got another one monday so i'm just trying to so i know he there's in a lot of debt with the Honda Civic. I was trying to avoid that. That's why I bought him a cheap $4,000 car. I don't fully grab it. Let me back out and make sure I got it. You've got a 16-year-old son and you

and his mom, y'all are divorced, so you took him and bought him a $4,000 car. You agreed with your ex-wife on this and then she turned around and went and bought him another car that's nicer. Is that right? Yes.

Okay. And so what's your question? I was trying to avoid, because he's paying her back for the Honda Civic, so I was trying to avoid him going in debt if you have a good way to explain why it's not a good idea to go $20,000 in debt for a car for a teenager

to understand so your 16 year old son is having to pay for this car yes how does he feel about that he thinks it's good because it's a nice car apparently Yes. How does he feel about that? He thinks it's good because it's a nice car, apparently. But I just don't want to start him out in debt. How long has he had it?

Monday. I'm going to throw this out there. Delaney, you can speak to the relationship dynamic so much better than I can, but I'll say this. I wonder if he would feel differently after a few months of having to pay that payment. After he's working extra hours, not getting to use that money for hanging out with his friends. Since it's already been bought, to just let him feel the payment,

and then maybe you try to revisit the issue again and say, hey, you talk about how to communicate it. I don't know. I'm just throwing that out there as an idea because teenagers are just so stinking short-sighted. They're like, all I'm thinking about is who I'm riding to the football game with Friday night. I can't think about the long term, my future, even the consequences of this payment until I feel it. And so I just wonder if that would help him think about it differently when he has to make this payment. If he really does, I don't know.

Tim, is his name on this car? Or is your ex-wife's name on this car? I would assume my ex-wife's. I gotta tell you, man, I've been doing this a long time, and it's rare that I just feel that I get mad in my chest, and I got mad on your

behalf. I got mad on this little boy's behalf. Because as you just mentioned, teens are so, so short sighted. I don't want to be, I don't want to be ugly, man, but your son's mom is incredibly short sighted and what she's passing along to

him is a number of lessons here. You, you can, you, if your dad makes a recommendation, you know what? Who cares what dad says? Let's go do something different. Hey, you only have $4,000 to spend. Let's get a safe card.

It's going to get you to and from. Nah, let's just get a $20,000. The lessons here that he's picking up in this situation are heartbreaking. Here's the best you can do, Tim. This is something that you're going to have to do and then you are going to have to be the grown-up here and set it down. And that is this.

You can take your son out for breakfast. You can take your son out for lunch. And you all just have a private time. Say, hey, tell me about this car. He's going to tell you it's awesome, it's nice. And say, you know what? It is a really nice car. You can do math.

16-year-olds don't always get math. You can lay down and say, hey, I just want you to see this. I'm giving you this $4,000 car. Your mom has done this. It's a nice car. It is really nice. You have this option to have no payments. And I want you to then explain, I've chosen to live my life debt-free.

I'm not chained to anything. I can get up and walk away. All the things you know about living a debt-free life. You're not going to run his mom down. You're not going to say, your mom's stupid. You're not going to talk crap about her. You're going to talk about the choices you have made. And then you're going to

tell him, man, it's going to be a lot of Friday nights you're out working. It's going to be a lot of Wednesday nights after school and Tuesdays you're out working. It's going to be exhausting. You're going to owe your mom money forever. And after that meeting, Tim, the conversation's over. You can go sell this car. You can let it sit.

I mean, that's up to you, brother. You can let that thing sit. But continuing to let it gnaw at your soul while this is going to happen with his mom when he's staying with her, it's going to happen. It's going to happen. And so I want you to clear your your heart on this deal sit him down and say hey brother this is the way the right way i think to be doing this the way i'm choosing to live my life your mom obviously has done this and then you got to put it down you could be that guy that's like you can't bring that car to my house

and that that's just putting a that's just putting a wedge between you and your son i wouldn't do that right what do you think this is such a this is such a hard i know i know and and and it's just putting a wedge between you and your son. I wouldn't do that. What do you think? This is such a hard. I hate it, man. I know. I know. And it's just a hard road for you to walk down and watch. Yeah. I think the lesson here that you're talking about, John, that is so important that I want people to get, and this is sort of what you're saying without saying it, but everybody can relate to this.

You are not responsible for your family's financial decisions. Yeah. Not your parents. Yeah. Not your sister. I mean, you have say over your children that live in your household, but even your adult children, you could advise them. You can have that coffee date.

Same with your parents. You can have that coffee date. You can tell them, hey, here's what I've done. Here's what's worked for me. But you cannot let it eat away at your soul because there's a boundary issue there of going you are not responsible you are not in control of what they do or don't do and you got to let that go because otherwise it's going to really weigh you down and i don't make your 16 year old son the pawn in the middle of a parenting fight between you and your ex yeah she handed him the keys to a brand new cool car, and he's 16.

And then she lovingly tagged him with the payments to this thing. Man, that gets me fired up. I'm most fired up on your behalf, Tim, because of the undermining. Because y'all two agreed on something. Let's do it this way. Y'all went and picked out this car, and then she swung one behind your back. It's really disrespectful. Yeah, it sucks. And you're in a hard situation. And so the only thing you can do and then she swung one behind your back. It's really disrespectful. Yeah, it sucks.

And you're in a hard situation and so the only thing you can do in this situation is you can control your thoughts, you can control your actions, you can take the high road, you can treat everybody with dignity and respect and you can go on about your day. I do, if I'm you, I am going to sit down

and have a one-on-one with my son and say, not lecture, not, you know what you should be, here's what I've chosen to do with my money. And because I chose to do this with my money, I able to buy you a four thousand dollar car with cash you know what i would do if i were in your shoes tim and i don't even know that this is right this is just kind of my gut is um i would have that conversation like you're saying over coffee i'd hang on to the car for a few months yeah and just let it be a visual of a payment free life

and and then after a few months if he still hasn't come around like because he may he may after i'm telling you after a few months of consequences you start to actually care a little bit more in any age in life by the way but especially teenagers he might get tired of those payments working those friday nights he might see that car and go yeah mom no thanks so i don't know i might hang on to it for a couple months i mean if assuming it's paid for in cash and all that things tim it's not you know too big of a deal for you he may he may just come around he may just come around i He may just come around. I hope he does. Here's the meta lesson here, good folks.

When somebody, no matter who you are and what road you happen to be walking in life, people are going to undermine you. They're going to come behind your back. They're going to look at your principles for how you're doing your money, how you're doing whatever, and they're going to say, that's stupid, and they're going to drop other things in your lap. At that moment, you have a choice. You can go to war and let the bodies pile up, or you can say, I'm going to take the high road here.

I'm going to be the person of dignity and respect. Bah, here's my boundary, and I'm going to walk this way. And that's the life of peace. There's always moments you've got to fight. We all have to pick those moments, but they're much rar moments you've got to fight. We all have to pick those moments. But they're much rarer than we like to imagine. Right? Tim, I'm sorry

for you, brother. Take the high road on this one, man. 888-825-5225. This is the Ramsey Show. I'm John Deloney, joined by Christy Wright. We're taking your calls on money and life and relationships and everything in between. Let's go to Kerry in Midland, Texas, my old stomping ground. Hey, Kerry, what's going on? Man, not a lot. How y'all doing?

We're doing great, brother. How can we help? I've got a question. And there's a lot of people out here that have asked me the same question, and I don't know the answer. We work in the oil field, and it's such a boom or bust, feast or famine, that the baby steps say you'd save up $1,000, and then you work your way through all your debt, and then you build your emergency fund. For people that have a job like this that could literally be over within the next week and be laid off,

should you swap step two and three to get that? What good is it going to do me to only owe $10,000 to my truck if I don't have a job? Okay. Kerry, I've got a question because I know that industry can be really feast or famine. But in your last five to seven years, have you gone months and months without a paycheck? I've been laid off three times in the last seven years, yes. Okay. And then what's the – because I've got friends who work out in Midland-Odessa area there.

What's the good yearsears look like? This year, I'll make $190,000. Yeah, that's what I was thinking. They're real good. And how much debt do you have? I tripled my salary to come out here. That's right. How much debt do you have?

About $160,000. Okay. What do you have $160,000 in debt on? I have a truck that had to meet certain requirements for my work that I get paid for, and then we got rid of our rent house and everything back home. We went and bought an RV. My wife and I live out here, and then she had a truck. Do you have debt on that RV?

Yes. Come on, Carrie. $1,000. What does she have a truck for? Because she don't like walking in a couple of hocks. That's exactly what I was getting at. So here's the thing. Carrie, I like you. Carrie, I know you because you're one of my friends.

I know the lifestyle of those out there working in the oil fields and dude those trucks you line them up out there and they are trucks of people who make 190 000 a year and then he does have an eye granted she has an eye so i don't have a nice truck i'm the work truck yes so here's let me tell you this you make 190 000 and y'all are broke. You're broke. No, no, no. I didn't say we're broke. No, no, no, no. I'm telling you, brother.

You're broke. And here's why. I've got about $14,000 saved up. Carrie, you are broke. You have a depreciating asset in an RV that you owe money on. You have a truck that has to meet work requirements. It's a depreciating asset that you owe money on. You have a truck that has to meet work requirements that's a depreciating asset that you owe money on. Your wife is driving some fancy Midland

truck, and I know exactly the truck it is, and it's a depreciating asset. Y'all are broke, and you make too much money. So to answer your original question, and I know, dude, I'm breaking your heart, brother, and I would hug you if I was sitting here with you. The reason we

say a thousand bucks this is as much a math problem as it is a psychology problem i want you to have a thousand dollars because i want there to be it is about a tire blew out and i don't have a used tire that i can afford because you are not going out to eat. Your wife is not driving a $60,000 truck. You're not buying a RV on payments. You're going to get one off Craigslist out there. The thousand bucks inspires you to sprint run. You are, you are being chased by lions and you got to get out of this debt. And if you only have a thousand dollars, you're not going to stop and be like, ah, you know what? Let's just go ahead and get that truck too. No, you're going to keep sprinting and running

because, yeah, you're right, $1,000 isn't enough money. It's not. It's not enough to float you. It's enough to just duct tape the thing so you can keep stumbling away because that line's coming for you, coming for you, and coming for you. What happens after you get past that point, once you

do have the money, then a flat tire is not going to be the end of your existence. When you're out of debt, then you immediately go to the three- to six-month emergency fund. And then you blow out all four tires, and it's annoying. It's not a shapeshifter. You get laid off, and you've got six months emergency fund. Man, then you can go work at Subway for six months until the market comes back, right? Or you can... I mean, what happens if I get laid off and I still got, you know, $4,000 a month in bank notes to pay that...

That's what I'm telling you. I only owe $10,000 left, but I don't have any money to pay it, but I better have an emergency fund big enough. But Kerry, listen, your three big debts are all depreciating assets. You're not hearing what I'm saying. Sell your wife's truck today. I get that. Sell it today. Sell your RV today.

You'll lose money on the RV. And, again, I'm being a smart aleck here, Kerry. But you're trying to say, hey, we want to keep floating all these big, fancy toys, which is what a giant RV out there is and what your wife's fancy truck is. We have all these big, fancy toys that we want to keep floating these things, but then we're nervous we're going to get laid off. Yes, you should be. You should be freaked out that you're going to get laid off

because you have so much leverage on the other side of your teeter-totter here. Sell everything. Get out of debt. Even if you have to move into a hotel, move into a one-bedroom apartment, or trade that down for the cheapest possible RV you can have, and then you're telling me you can't figure it out $190,000 a year? You can't. You could be out of debt so fast on that income if you can get rid of some of these massive, like you're saying, these massive debts, these massive things that you don't have to have. You need something. Your wife does need a vehicle to get around, but she doesn't need the vehicle that she has.

And that's what we're saying. We're not saying get rid of these things and camp and walk everywhere. We're just saying downsize. It's exactly what we were talking about earlier of like we upgrade, upgrade. And yeah, when you in your mind think I make $190,000 a year, I deserve a big fancy truck. If you pay for it in cash, by all means, we want you to have those things. But when you're taking out debt, you're actually broke on a really, really good income and you work too hard and carry the position we

want you to get in. For short term, yes, downsize, cut back, drive embarrassing cars, figure out where you're going, all of that. But then in the long term, you're going to be in a position where you make a really good income and you can have those things, but you don't have that stress. So you get laid off. So what? Because you've got so much money, you're fine. And here's the fun thing about getting laid off when you have no debt and you've been making $190,000 for two cycles. Then you go buy that truck from that person that's got to roll it off because they're broke and you buy it at half price, right? You go buy a really nice RV from somebody that's just got to unload it because they've got $160,000 in depreciating asset debt and you buy that RV for half price. That's what we're talking about. You've got to survive one bust cycle and all of a sudden you're on top of

this thing in a really major, major way. And so what I'm telling you is yes, sell it, man. Sell everything you got or get released. Get rid of your wife's truck. Go bananas paying off your smallest debt, which is probably your truck. Then go bananas paying this RV. You will not go to a restaurant. You're not going to go to a movie.

You're not going to go to a concert. Your wife's going to be working too. Y'all are going to be out of your minds on this deal. Work and work. You're going to pick up extra shifts. You're going to keep going and going and going. And then when you get it laid off, which you will, you know how that thing busts, it's going to be annoying. And then you and your wife are going to go on a trip. You're going to take that RV somewhere and you can go work. It becomes limitless. There's something about that thousand dollar emergency fund because it's just enough for that tire, like we're talking about, that it does light that fire under you. And, Kerry, the reality is as long as you keep justifying that debt staying around, it's going to stay around, and you're going to stay broke. What we're trying to tell you to do is different.

It is intentionally designed to fire you up, to be a little bit scared, to get you to work really hard, get rid of this stuff and do something different. So you get a different outcome. You're not going to get that different outcome by being okay with these things hanging around where you're just not. And so we're trying to put you in a position that actually motivates you to do something different. That's what's going to lead to different results. You made $190,000 this year and you are broke. Broke. You owe $160,000. And it shouldn't be that way. And you know that, man. That's why you're calling. And again, brother, I love you because I know you. You are my friend. You're the guys I went to college with. You're the guys I hung out with. You're the guys that were headed to med school and were like, man, I can make way more money out

here. I know you, Kerry. And that's why I want to tell you that I love you. And I want to tell you that there is peace on the other side of this thing, too. Going to sleep knowing, if I get laid off tomorrow, so what, man? That'll be annoying. No big deal. Then we're going to get a truck on discount, baby. All right. Thanks so much for the call, Carrie.

Hey, that's one more hour in the books. We'll be back before you know it right here on The Ramsey Show. Dave here. We just launched a brand new listener survey. We want to know what you think about the show. You'll be entered to win a $100 Amazon gift card. No purchase necessary. Take the survey at RamseySolutions.com slash survey or text survey to 33789.