The Ramsey Show - App - My Parents Gave My Wife a Car for Her Birthday but It's in Their Name (Hour 3)

Episode Date: February 15, 2021

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Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, broadcasting from the Dollar Car Rental Studios, it's The Ramsey Show, where debt is dumb, cash is king, and the paid-off home mortgage has taken the place of the BMW as the status symbol of choice. I'm Dave Ramsey, your host, Chris Hogan. Ramsey Personality is my co-host. Open phones at 888-825-5225. That's 888-825-5225. John is with us to start this hour off in Kansas City. Hi, John. How are you?

Not too bad. I appreciate you taking my call. Sure. What's up? Hey, for about the last, I'd say, dozen years, I've been focusing on real estate investing as a landlord, and I do a few flips here and there. But I've focused on that, and I don't feel good about some of my cash investments as far as IRA goes. I feel real good about what I've done with real estate and what that's done for my net worth. But at this time, should I just continue on with my real estate investing, or do I need to put more money in my IRA?

I have about $150, and I'm 50 years old. About $150 in my IRA. Well, the point of getting retirement is to have some wealth. Right. I don't really care what it's in, as long as you're comfortable with it. I'm only comfortable investing in two things. I invest in good growth stock mutual funds, and I have a lot in that in my retirement accounts.

Now, if you're in a bank IRA, you said cash, and you're making 1%, then you need to roll that and get with the SmartVestor Pro and get it in a mutual fund. Well, what I meant was long-term cash. It's with an investment company. Is it making any money? Yes. Yes, it's doing well. Okay.

So what's the gripe? I just don't feel good about it, I guess, is what I'm saying. Why? Should I be a little more well-rounded? Well, you're heavy real estate. Right. You don't feel good about that, or you don't feel good about the IRA invested? I don't feel good about being heavily invested in real estate.

I mean, I feel good for what it's done for me. It's performed well. I get a really good return on my investment on a percentage basis. I'm just looking forward to another 10 or 15 years when I want to retire. Yeah. Are the properties all paid off? They are. Okay.

And what's the total value in your real estate portfolio? About $1.2 million. Way to go, man. Very well done. Well, I am personally, just to show you, this is who you're asking, way heavier in real estate for two reasons. One is I bought a bunch of real estate at a nickel to a dime on the dollar in 08. And so that stuff has gone through the freaking roof since I bought it at the bottom, comparatively. I mean, the lost values in 08 recovered within 18 or 24 months. And then on top of that, it is appreciated dramatically since then.

And I'm an old real estate dog. I got my real estate license in 1978, man. four months and then on top of that it is appreciated dramatically since then um and i'm an old real estate dog i got my real estate license in 1978 man so i i love that business and i love that investment i'm very comfortable with it so um you know the uh way more than that 50 in real estate in my net worth and so but i'm very comfortable with that i'm not worried about it because the real estate's all doing well it's not got if i got a piece of real estate doesn't do well i get rid of it but i don't get into that very often um there's no rule that says that you can't be there and other people on the other hand hate being a landlord and they've got all their money in mutual funds which is just fine those are the two things i put money in i don't really put money in

anything else yeah kind of same here yeah um i do have a home mortgage i don't feel great about it but you know let's get that cleared off that'll probably help yeah i mean all right you know if you pop one of those investment properties and pay that thing off that wouldn't make me mad but i mean have you done something theoretically wrong by the way that I teach or run my life or Chris teaches or runs his life? No, you haven't. Okay. Well, my thing about my home mortgage is about $300,000, and my house is probably worth double that. So I'm about 50% there.

I always look at the interest rate on my home mortgage and think, well, I'm making a lot more with my money in the real estate. That's bull. That's complete bull. If your house was paid off, you wouldn't go borrow on it to buy a rental house when you're sitting on a million and a half or a million and two and paid for real estate. If you thought debt was great, you would have been deep in debt on that stuff. You don't think well uh so if you know if if i if if some of my real estate brings me you know uh 15 to 25 percent return i would not borrow on my house to buy that okay well i i the only thing i've borrowed you know my mortgage is just on my home i know effectively you've borrowed on

your house to buy that because you're not willing to sell it to pay off your house. It's the same math. Right. So you can do whatever you want to do. I pay off debt and stay out of debt, and I got out of debt a long time ago. I don't borrow money. And so when a pandemic comes or a 2008 comes or a 911 comes, I'm the little pig in the brick house. The wolf can huff and puff, and I'm ready.

And, John, you've done a great job, of course, paying off the rental properties, and that's great. Now, as Dave was talking, pivot. Let's look at your primary residence. This is your home, for goodness sake. You want that thing paid off and out of your life. So that needs to be the next mission. If you're making 15% on a piece of real estate, dude, you're not making that in a mutual fund. It's got a higher hassle factor than the mutual fund has.

But you're not making that on your mutual funds. I make more on my real estate than I do on my mutual funds. But the mutual funds are less hassle. And, you know, so it's whichever one you want to do. It doesn't really matter. The main thing is grow money. Dan is in Vancouver. Hi, Dan.

How are you? Dave, thanks for taking my call. Sure. I really appreciate it. And, Chris, I got to tell you, first of all, I am one of those old dogs that used to go to the S&H store with my mom to cash in the booklets. I love it. So my question is, I'm 64 and a half. My girlfriend is 62.

I've been single for seven years. She's been single for 20. We're both pretty well financially set. I've got about a half million in my retirement account. I don't owe anything with the exception of my condo. And my girlfriend pretty much doesn't owe anything. She's got about four times the amount. So we're having these conversations as far as do we get married,

do we not get married, do you hear all the different comments from the peanut gallery of why do you want to get married, what are the benefits besides the spiritual benefits. So I want to find out your thoughts as far as at this age, what would you do in a situation like this? I am that age. And so, but, you know, the answer is real simple. For me, I'm a Christian.

I've got one option, get married. That's my only option. And I believe, as a person of faith, that God gives us that direction because it's what's best for us. And now, do you need to maybe do a prenup with her with $2 million and you with a half a million for clarity? Yeah, that wouldn't be a bad thing. I don't usually recommend prenups. Most of the time, I don't. But you guys have enough money there, and it just keeps everything real clean.

And, you know, extended family or whatever no longer has an opinion once there's a prenup in there. But Dan, you keep saying at this age, you're young. You still got 30-something years left, buddy. Live your life. Get connected to someone that loves you and you can love and keep moving forward. Sharon always jokes and says, you'll be remarried in about 30 minutes when I'm gone. I'm like, no, you'll be remarried in about 30 minutes when I'm gone. I'm like,

no, it'll take me 45. I have to cry for 12 more minutes. You're listening to The Ramsey Show. People all over the country are discovering a faith-based and budget-friendly way of meeting health care costs through Christian Health Care Ministries. Christian Health Care Ministries, or CHM, is a nonprofit organization that helps members carry one another's burdens with health care expenses, and they have successfully shared each other's medical bills for nearly 40 years.

See if CHM is right for you by visiting chministries.org. CHM is a proud sponsor of Dave Ramsey Live Events. Thank you for joining us, America. Chris Hogan, Ramsey personality, is my co-host today. Michelle's with us in Madison, Wisconsin. Hi, Michelle. How can we help? Hey, Dave.

Hey, Chris. How are you guys today? Michelle. How can we help? Hey, Dave. Hey, Chris. How are you guys today? Great. How can we help? Well, I'm going to try to sum this up pretty quickly. I've got a lot going on over here, but first of all, I have no debt. I was divorced last year. We sold our house. We bought it in the recession, so we got it cheap, sold at the top of the market. Kind of a good deal, as a bit of a deal as you can get a divorce, I guess. So I have no debt. I drive a paid-off Subaru, no debt whatsoever. I'm happily renting right now. I've got some cheap living going on at the moment. I have about $27,00027,000, uh, liquid savings. So plenty of emergency funds.

Um, I do have, um, several businesses. I'm actually selling one of them this year. Um, have an interested buyer. So I'm not sure how that's going to go. And I do have, um, half of my ex-husband's pension. Um, my question for you is what I should be doing next. I am not, I don't earn a lot. I do have five income streams, which is a little unusual, I think, but I'm able to be home with my kiddos who are doing virtual schooling. They're 15, 13, and 11.

My annual income is about $20,000. I get about $500 a month in child support. So my question is, should I be saving for my next home, or should I prioritize retirement and education for the kids that are quickly becoming adults? If I'm happily renting, is it important to buy another house or should I be prioritizing my money elsewhere or all three? It's just a matter of which order. It's a matter of which. Not all of

them are things you're going to get around to. It's just a matter of the order of the attack. You're still healing from a divorce. You're trying to get a career started again, which apparently you probably didn't have before. Oh, I did. I have several businesses, actually. They're just not a lot.

And you're doing a lot of work for $20,000. Yes, I am. And so I think that's the biggest thing that's a glaring concern to me is your lack of income. Yeah. So, no, I wouldn't be worrying about buying a home right now. I'd be worrying about, not worrying, but my first order of business is if I'm going to invest in something, is to get your income up. And that can be a work-at-home thing.

It could be that you invest some money in one of these ideas that is working and that you can expand. And I might do that before I did. I'm not worrying about buying a home immediately. If you buy a home in the next five years, you'll be okay. Yeah. And if you get the first kid in college in the next five years, you'll be okay. Yeah. And if you get the first kid in college in the next five years, you will have done a good job and so on. But you're going to have to have income in excess of what you've got to do either one of those things.

Would you agree? I do agree. Again, I'm selling one of my businesses this year. How much are you going to sell for? It's not making any money. Yeah, probably between somewhere around $10,000. Yeah, and that does not solve the issue at hand. I mean, you have a household of four on $20,000 in Madison, Wisconsin.

Yes, I know. That's the glaring concern. I'm not saying you did something wrong. I'm just saying if there was an area to work on, it's not a lack of home ownership and it's not a lack of retirement savings right it's the area the area we want to work on is do something and it could be investing into one of these ideas again if you're going to put money into something that's what i would put it towards and not much but a little bit and let's let's see if we could just i mean really i mean you could double your income maybe maybe $40,000. Yeah.

And, Michelle, you've done a great job by not having debt. You've put yourself in a great situation. And so that's the thing I'm looking at because, again, the income is going to allow you to be able to save up for a house or save up for college and do the things you're looking for. So, again, trying to thin the herd a little bit of the businesses and figure out which one's a hobby versus which one's a business because businesses make money. Hobbies are fun. And so just be honest with yourself and start to assess that

and let go of some of those things so now you can focus on the main things and really be able to grow your income. I'm going to guess and say out of the 20,000, 15,000 comes from one of them. And the others are semi-hobbies. Probably. They're a distraction, and they probably are fun, and she likes them. But the one that's making money, she needs to lean in on, I think. Wait a minute.

You said it's fun, and they enjoy it, but it's a distraction. Yeah, meaning she's not making money she needs to lean in on i think wait a minute you said it's just guessing and they enjoy it but it's a distraction yeah meaning you should not make any money no hobby yeah no no yeah and that that's real i'm just guessing yeah that's the way my i'm a little bit add myself and that's the way my mind works i can get i can get caught up in 73 things at once and i have to purposefully go oh no we're gonna get the idea down to one or two because i can get just i can get i can thin out my resources so thin right of time emotion spirit money all the everything else is gone and so hang on i'm going to give you a copy of christy christy writes book business boutique uh equipping women to make money doing what they love now i'm not saying having fun is a bad thing i'm just saying if you're not making money doing it

and you're using fun as an excuse to do it and calling it a business, that's a hobby. Yeah. All right. Edwin is with us. Edwin's in New York City. Hi, Edwin. How can we help? Hi.

How are you? Thank you so much for taking my call. Sure. What's up? All right. So my wife and I, we are on a BabyStack 3B. We're saving up for a house. And we were debating also to save up for a car as well.

So we had some extra saving on the side for it, but we decided not to do it. And my in-laws, I guess they knew that we wanted to get another car because I already have one. And my in-laws bought my wife a car for her birthday. So we were very grateful and generous with the gift and everything, but we found out that they actually had to finance the car in order to get it to us. So we weren't really too comfortable with that, but wanted to call to see what can we do next. So obviously they did not put the car in your name

or they financed it with a personal note? Yeah, the car is under their name. The insurance, registration, everything is under their name. Nothing is on our name. And they still have to pay it off. And the other thing is it's a brand new car too. So it's not like an old car. It's a brand new car.

Oh, my Lord. Yeah, so we don't want to – we have the money to – we don't know what the remaining balance is. We could assume how much it is, and we have the money to pay it. But then to them, it feels like we're taking away from their gift to us. Yeah. Well, this is not a gift. This is a curse. Yeah.

They're just confused. They're broke people trying to do a nice thing the wrong way. And, Edward, if you do this, you're taking money out of the home down payment fund, correct? Well, the thing is that we had the money aside for the car and also for the home. Okay. But since we decided that, you know what, we're not going to get a car right now, we kind of just grouped everything together.

So the only difference is going to be, I don't know, a difference of like seven months in completing the babysitter ED. So it's not that big of a deal for us, but I don't know how to take it. You've got serious family issues. Right. Because normal people don't know how to take it. You've got serious family issues. Right. Because normal people don't do this. This is toxic. Normal people communicate adult to adult and say,

we'd love to give you a car, but it's going to take us a little while to pay it off and talk about it instead of showing up and going, surprise, we're going to give you a pony. She's not eight years old. She's a grown woman. This is toxic, weird crap. Yeah, they've tried to tell us that, hey, look, we want to get you a car. What kind of car do you guys want? And we told them, like, hey, look, you know, we want a wave.

We don't want a car right now. We're good how we are right now. But I guess they just felt like it was, I don't know, like they knew best kind of thing. Yeah, they were demanding. They decided they were going to tell you all what you're going to do. So how does your wife feel about this? She's a little mixed about it. She doesn't want to hurt their feelings, but she knows it's a bad deal.

Right. Yeah. Exactly. Well, I think the two of you have to decide what you're going to do. If this happened at my house, your wife, it's her parents. She's going to have to handle it. I mean, you can sit there for support, but she's going to have to do if this happened at my house your wife is her it's her parents she's going to have to handle it i mean you can sit there for support but she's going to do the talking mom and dad we love you and this was an attempt to do something really nice but it was a negative attempt no and we don't want the car we will not accept the car and you should take the

car back and you should sell it yep and get it out of your life and then you guys go on with your life and don't do this again please have better communication with us than this this is not how we live our lives this is the ramsey show so so In the lobby of Ramsey Solutions on the debt-free stage, Justin and Heather are with us. Hey, guys, how are you? Good. Welcome. Where do you guys live?

Attica, Michigan. Awesome. Good to have you. Welcome to Nashville. And how much debt have you paid off? $72,260. All right. Love it. And how much debt have you paid off? $72,260. All right. Love it. And how long did that take you?

Eight and a half months. Good for you. Wow. And your range of income during that time? Well, we're self-employed, so in 2019, we had $80,000. And this year, we're projected to make between $115,000 and $120,000. Wow. very good. Excellent. What do you guys do for a living?

I'm a carpenter. Home remodeling and stuff like that. Okay, very cool. So tell us, what did you pay off? Well, we had $2,000 worth of couches, $5,500 for a classic car, $6,600 for a dirt bike, $9,800 for another classic car, $10,500 for a dump trailer, and $37,800 for a student loan. Wow. Sounds like somebody had some toys. Well, I'll take full responsibility for that one.

Hers was only the student loan. I wasn't thinking about her. Yeah, you're right. That's so great. Somebody has to be responsible. So you must have had some money. Yeah, you're right. That's so great. Somebody has to be responsible. So you must have had some money in savings or you sold something. We sold about $24,000 worth of stuff. What did you sell?

We sold the 54 Hudson Hornet. And Justin sold the brand new dirt bike that he got. He didn't even get to ride it. Oh, my gosh. So since we're in Michigan, we bought it in November, and it was gone by the end of March. So, no time to ride in the winter. And then we also sold some

tools that he had laying around, and a boat. Oh wow. So you sacrificed some real stuff here. Justin, what happened? What caused you all to get this serious? Well, you know, stuff is just stuff. You know, I look at the kids every day, and I don't want to, you know, I want to give them a means, you know, show them, teach them, you know, so they can provide for themselves and better themselves. And I think, you know, with owning our business, by the time the end of 2019 came, we had all those loans.

And Justin was working for a contractor that when he paid, it paid really well. But getting him to pay was a job in itself. And so trying to float, paying our subcontractors, keeping the business going with buying materials and the expenses for it, and then also paying ourselves. The weight of that got really heavy. And we were working basically for nothing. And I think that the other thing too is we realized we had our priorities wrong and that we needed to put God first. And once we put God first in our life, then all that stuff just became stuff.

It didn't become the source of contentment that we were looking for. And so once we did that, it was like the floodgates opened. And it's like you say, you know, when God realizes you can manage a small, then he gives you more. And as the year went along, we couldn't believe, like, the profits that we were getting from these jobs. And we were like, did we always get this much money and just blow it? Or, like, I— We know the answer to that question. Yeah.

And we had a few bumps up along the road. In July, I got into a car accident. So we were pretty thick into it, and we were really close to being done. And Justin had an 85 Chevy Suburban laying around that had no air conditioning. The radio didn't work. And it was not my first choice of car, but I factually named her Bertha. There you go.

And drove her with pride because we were not going to get another loan. And actually, we ended up getting the car back, and seeing the progress that we had with so little left on the student loan, I was like, I don't care about getting it fixed up. Let's take the money that we were going to use to fix up the car, and I don't have to see the outside of it. It's fine on the inside. And we tacked it on because we just saw how fast it would progress, like getting out of

debt sooner. So when it originally started, we thought it was going to be two years, and I convinced him it would only take 18 months. And then it turned into a year. And then as we just kept going and just kept piling and looking at everything that we could sell, it just turned into eight and a half months and we were done. It kind of turned into a game. Mm-hmm.

I mean, once you turn loose of things emotionally, then it's like, okay, how can we, what's the, it's like Tetris, where can we set this money to make this snowball roll? Yep. And I was listening to your show and you had someone on and he said something that really struck a chord. It was that God's not a transactional God. He's a relational God. And that, you know, he's not just going to give you the $70,000.

But when you commit to it, he finds that he gives you a way to do it. So Justin had lots of opportunities for work. We had all this stuff that became such a burden, became a blessing in a way, because it became a means to get out of debt and get out of the mess that we had made. Very cool. And Justin, you talk about your kids being your motivation. How many kids do you all have? We have three. How old are they?

Five and a half, almost four, and almost two. And the stuff is just stuff. You don't, you know, okay, I don't have a brand new dirt bike. I have a 20-year-old dirt bike. I have a 25-year-old dirt bike. I have a 25-year-old car. It gets me to work the same way. That's right.

So what's it really matter? That's right. Got your priorities straight. Well done. How's it feel to be free? It's amazing. When we sit and look at, you know, like all we have is just a house payment, you know, it's just such a weight lifted off. And, off. And being able to show that for the kids, too.

We're starting to teach the five-year-old about giving and saving and spending. And she's got her chores around the house, and she just went and bought her first toy from earning her $8 of unlimited dishwasher. Yeah. Love it. You guys are incredible. Well done, heroes. Very proud of you. What do you tell people the key to getting out of debt is?

Well. Being on the same page. Yes, yes. Because we've actually known about you for 10 years, and we were Ramsey-ish for 10 of those years. We actually met you seven years ago at your other building. And we get on board, but then, you know, doing this is, it's a commitment. And, you know, like, it was something that we didn't think we would be able to do. And we thought we were better than the average person

because we did have $1,000 in our emergency fund. We did have a loose budget. And, you know, we would get a loan and we'd pay it off early, but then we'd go and get another one, and then we'd go and get another one. And, okay, well, after this one we're going to get into it. And we never really did. And then finally when all that kind of just weighed down, you were like, okay, we've got to do it.

Got to knock it out now. Got to do the recipe the way that it's made. Yeah, you're like, okay, we got to do it. Got to knock it out now. Got to do the recipe the way that it's made. Yeah, you kind of get disgusted after some point. Yeah. And it's just like game on. You're working until all hours of the night. Nothing to show for it. Feel like a rat in a wheel.

Just run, run, run, run, get nowhere. Yep. Well done, you guys. Very, very proud of you. We got a copy of Chris Hogan's book for you, Everyday Millionaires. That needs to be the next chapter in your story. And the kiddos join you for the debt-free scream. What are their names

and ages? This is Addie and she's five. This is Emerson and she's almost two. And this is Hudson and he is almost four. Wow, you got a house full. This is awesomeness right here. Well, you've changed your family tree, guys. I'm very proud of you.

Very well done. Very well done. All right, Justin, Heather, Addie, Hudson, and Emmy, $72,000 paid off in eight and a half months, making $80,000 to $115,000. They sold everything that wasn't nailed down. Count it down. Let's hear a great debt-free scream. Three, two, one.

We're debt-free! Well done, you guys. Oh, wow. Very, very well done. Absolutely. These young people, these young kids are going to have a whole different future now. Mom and dad have taken back control and have a path and have clarity. And that's fantastic.

You guys just started a legacy. And that's amazing. It is amazing. You're looking at a family tree that got changed. Those of you watching on YouTube, and I've got to tell you, that's a real thing. It really happens. Yes, it does. And, you know, Rachel Cruz was born the year that we went broke.

And we started understanding these things. And, of course, our older sister Denise was a toddler our marriage was hanging on by a thread that's the year our life was changed we said never again never again and now Rachel's got kids as such so and you know the family tree

changes you are changing it but you have to make a decision and you have to draw a line in the sand and go, that's it. We're done. That's right. We're done. And you don't have to drive a 20-year-old something the rest of your life, but you do until you don't. You got to make those sacrifices.

It's a requirement. You got to do it until you don't got to do it. Yep. That's it. And you pay cash for it as you go. That's the way it works. Very well done, you guys. Proud of you.

This is The ramsey show Thank you. Our scripture of the day, Titus 2.7, Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity and dignity thomas jefferson said as matters of style swim with the current in matters of principles stand like a rock mr stylish himself yes thomas jefferson who knew there you go chris hogan ramsey personality is my co-host today here on the air. James is with us in Nashville. Hi, James. Welcome to the Dave Ramsey Show. Thank you, Dave.

How are you? Better than I deserve. What's up? Hey. I have a father who's a longtime believer in keeping the cash nest egg. Unfortunately, he's pretty elderly now, and that nest egg has grown north of 500K. So I'm wondering, what do I do with 500K of $100 bills when he passes? He's 87 now.

And, you know, it's legitimately earned. He's run a business his entire life. He's put back a little bit of money every month and never spent it. And here I am in this dilemma. Yeah. Who do you bank with? I bank with Regents. Okay, good.

Go into them and talk to them about a private banker, and go ahead and set your bank up on notice for this, and ask them how to process this cash best, well in advance. Go ahead and start talking about it now. The ATF requires a report. I believe it's over $10,000 cash comes in. It's reported on you uh to keep drug dealers running money through banks okay and um so a report goes out but to the feds but that's not the end of the world it just shows that it's there and um you know you know i don't i do not

know what a bank will require to process that much cash i know what i would require i'd require an armed guard leaving his house uh and it would certainly be best if you could talk him into he's sitting on hundred dollar bills wow yes james is your dad 500 yeah is he does he have all his mental faculties still uh well that's another issue but i mean he's probably 90 okay i mean for his age would he allow you to open a bank account and begin to put this in oh heavens no okay okay and all the reason i asked about the faculties too is this is what you know about you know the 500 000 i'm i i'm just seriously in the backyard with a metal detector. In the backyard.

I would ask him just then talk and say, Dad, you know, where else did you used to put money? And just so you're able to kind of have a trail, you might be surprised. There might be closer to $750,000 or something, you know, all totaled once you find it all. Yeah, going through his home. Go ahead. Yeah, going through his home after he passes will certainly be.

Oh, my. I'm guessing he probably has hoarded other things. Not so much. He loves his cash, and that's about all he cares about. Okay. All right. And you know where that is. He's got a bunch of real estate and some other holdings and such,

but it's mainly this cash is my big concern because I'm always worried about civil asset forfeiture and something when you're doing something. Are you an only child, James? Yes. Okay, okay. That's good. Well, yeah, I hope he has a will, and anything you can do to, I just worry about his security.

Yeah. And so, obviously, it hasn't affected him so far in 87 years, so he's okay. I don't panic about it, but. Would you get a safe, Dave, and at least try to get something in there to lock it down? That wouldn't be a bad idea. You know. If you can talk him into it. Yeah.

He may already have done it. Yeah. Or who he's told about it. So just keeping him safe. Yeah. That's the idea is that, my goodness gracious. But, yeah, you're going to have to somehow, usually a private banker would help you within your branch and regions as a reasonable bank. They should be able to provide that and can help you process the cash.

I'm sure there is a reporting mechanism, I'm positive, that they have to go through, but I don't know how much it changes between $10,000 and $500,000. I don't either. I don't. When I say at the beginning of the show, cash is king, that is not what I meant. Just for clarity. Just for clarity. I don't have $500,000 in cash stored in my house. I can promise you that.

Yeah, that money needs to be working for you, not just in the hammock. And that's what it's doing just sitting there. Mike is in Charlotte, North Carolina. Hey, Mike, how are you? I'm great. I'm great. Hey, guys. So my wife and I did our estate planning last year.

We've got two daughters under the age of four. So if something happens to us, one of my brothers would be the executor of our estate, and another brother and his wife would raise our daughters. Dave, I've heard you talk about how you sit down every year with your family and the board to review what would happen if you died. But my wife and I are kind of wondering how often should we review our estate with my brothers? I think my wife's a little hesitant to disclose to family where we stand financially. So should we dive into those financial details? Yes. Don't ask them to manage it if leave it to them and then be surprised by what it is. We should have a reading of the will while you're alive and say this is how much this is.

If you trust him to manage it, you've got to be able to trust him to tell him about it. Right. The caveat would be that he should not discuss that with other family members. That's right. And, Mike, I agree. That annual review is a good thing. Here's also the other kicker. You can send the kids in one direction and the money in the other.

He did. Okay, you did do that. They're two different brothers, right? Right. Oh, yeah, definitely sit down with them. You don't even have to sit down with them. I mean, if nothing changed, and last year you said there's 1.1 million in the 401K, and this year there's 1.2 million, and you call them up and just have a 10-minute conversation,

everything's the same, only difference is here's the balances, then I'd give them an update. The more complicated your estate, the more in-depth your annual review will be, but it could be three minutes. But I just want to touch base, make sure he's still cool managing it, make sure. Because people do this stuff, and they look up, and a decade has gone by, and nobody's talked about it again. And memories get short. Right. And if family gets crazy, Mike, you reserve the right to update it and make changes.

Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. So it's not in stone, buddy. You can adjust that. And anything, of course, major that changes in your life, if you change, if you move your residence to a different state, if a child reaches the age of 18 or 21, that may necessitate a change or recommended change in her will at that point. Yeah. You know, you also need to, as the kids eat, teenagers start reviewing this stuff with them. With them.

Yeah. And I was saying, sit down and talk about it. I was talking about the initial meeting, Dave. Yeah. Where you're sitting down and yes, and then that way you can email update and just keeps everybody on the same page. Yeah. Yeah.

That's probably, if he doesn't know the amount, he just said, yeah, I'll manage the money. He may think it's $2 million and it may think it's two million and it may be 200,000 or it may be the other way around right and so it's you need to just everybody's got to have expectations about exactly what is going on here absolutely what's going to happen uh if you can't trust them to discuss it while you're alive don't trust them to manage it when you're dead that's the truth so um and you got you know you got to go through this stuff and you talk about the kids we talked about that with uh who we were going to leave the kids to how you're got to go through this stuff. And you talk about the kids. We talked about that with who we were going to leave the kids to. How are you going to take care of these kids?

Yeah. No, I mean, that needs to be discussed. And when we hit the drum about getting a will, people, this is because if you die, it's called dying intestate without a will. If you don't have one, the government's going to make decisions about where your kids go. Yeah. And I've traveled to almost all the states. And guess what? There are potholes in

every road well if they can't take care of a road what makes you think they're going to take care of your baby so do a will detail the people that are getting the kids and do it the right way i'm done are you fired that's pretty good potholes that's pretty good i like that you can't trust them take care of the roads and don't trust them take care of your state that's right well yep that's. Yep. That's good. Mike, that's a really good question, and thank you for doing that. But the more complicated the estate, the more in-depth their annual review would be. The annual review could, if they've got all the information the year before, it could be a five-minute phone conversation.

It doesn't require much, but it makes you stay in touch with the details, and the people on the other end stay in touch with the details, and that's smart. That's just good diligence. Chris Hogan, good show. Thank you, sir. Good to be with you. James Shiles is our producer. Kelly Daniels, our associate producer and phone screener. Great job in there, guys. I am Dave Ramsey, your host.

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. Hey, it's Kelly, associate producer and phone screener for The Ramsey Show. If you would like to do your debt-free scream live on the show, make sure you visit DaveRamsey.com slash show and register. We would love for you to come to Nashville and tell your story.