The Ramsey Show - App - Talking to Family About Money (Hour 2)

Episode Date: December 7, 2023

Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, this is The Ramsey Show. It's where we help you win in your money life, your work life, and your relationship life. The phone number to jump in on the conversation is 888-825-5225. 888-825-5225, 888-825-5225. I'm Ken Coleman, Ramsey Personality, and I'm joined by my good friend, Ramsey Personality, Rachel Cruz. We're both a little raspy today. We don't know why. We haven't been yelling at our kids, I promise, but we've got the throat coat going. I know. Are you raspy? You're not. You don't think I am? I'm about to start coughing. You're really struggling. I'm good. I'm good. So if her voice falters, I just jump in until she's ready again.

It's just how it works. It's just the weather. It's the weather. But anyway, we're excited to coach you up. We want to help you win. Jump in. 888-825-5225. Let's go to Mobile, Alabama.

Chase is joining us on the line. Chase, how can we help? Well, Dave, it's a pleasure to talk to you, Ken. I'm a big fan. Rachel, thank you for taking my call. You bet. Thank you for calling. What's going on?

I'm 25, and I'm trying to get some advice on how I have a adult and proper conversation with my parents about their financial situation. I planned on getting them financial peace and diversity for Christmas and was hoping that I was able to talk them into just checking it out and giving it a shot because I felt like if they at least gave it a shot that they would be hooked. But I wanted to do this right with good intentions and love and not make it feel like it was just their kid trying to get involved in their finances. Have you ever talked to them about their finances before? It's a delicate topic. Me and my dad talk about finance quite a bit. We get along with it,

but my mom and my dad are not on the same page. They haven't been for a long time. They have separate finances, separate bank accounts. They keep everything separate. And the last, I was kind of on the fence whether to do it or not, and last night they kind of got the news that my sister's transmission on her car is about to go out and they don't have an emergency fund. So it felt kind of bad telling them that

and seeing their faces when they got that news is your dad um is he more in line with you on what they should be doing yeah he uh he's the one who actually introduced me to y'all um when i was a little bit younger uh as as day would say he he's Dave-ish. He's done it in the past, but he never stuck to it. And what's your mom's like, Chase? Your mom, what's her status? I think she feels like it's a little controlling.

And I understood it when I was a little younger because I was so worried about what was going to be today. I wasn't worried about next year, five years down the line, 10 years down the line. And I'm definitely more coming around to that, but I feel like she's more worried about tomorrow and the end of the week. Here's the big problem. The problem is they both have different accounts

and different philosophies. So you gifting them FPU, I mean, I think it's a great thing, but they've got some serious, serious marital issues around money that I'm not sure that you can stick your nose in. And even if you could or did, it would make a difference. So Rachel, what do you think? Here's what I would say. If you were my friend and we were hanging out,

I would say one thing I've learned in life, and I can save you thousands of dollars of therapy for this one, you can't control people. You can't. And as much as you, which is what I've done, of like a certain person in my life, I can conjure up some conversation, and I pray the whole way there,

and I think this is going to be the thing, I'm going to say the thing, and the light bulb's going to go off, and they're going to turn, and it's going to be heroic and great. And I don't need the credit because their life is like, like I conjure up this whole thing that if I just say the right thing and have the right conversation, I can help them see X,

Y, and Z. And Chase, I've had to let that go completely because is your heart there to help them? Absolutely. But you can't control what they're going to do. And here's another thing, Chase. They're not asking.

They're not coming to Chase and saying, gosh, Chase, I feel like you're just not stressed with money. What are you doing? Will you show us? So what you're doing is a little bit, which I'm fine with you gifting them FPU. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. But I think your expectations have to be very low. And the role that you play chase is a

hey I'm giving you this gift because it's helped me I'm talking as you chase and I've loved it and if you guys want to try it out awesome here it is and you wipe off your hands and you walk away because you can't that's not the role that you play in life for them. And I hate to say it. I feel like that sounds like, oh, we're going to just turn our backs or something. And it's not that. It's just the reality of the relationship. So that's what I would say, Chase. Go ahead and gift them FPU. I think that's a really kind thing. And you can say from your experience how it's helped you. But besides that, there's nothing that you're going to say, or I wouldn't put that pressure on you, that this thing you're going to say is going to change them,

and or they're not asking for your advice, and they're grownups. Now, I would say this, and I think Rachel's absolutely right. She is 100% right, but I would have at least one man-to-man with my dad because you guys seem to be in alignment. It's like he agrees with it philosophically dad knows though he does but i'm saying i take the mom i know but i'd take one shot if this were me yeah and my dad i would go dad i want to support you i can't do anything about this you are gonna have to lead mom you are gonna have to do something about this and i hate that you're

in this situation i'll support you however but but I'm going to tell you, Dad, I think this has gone on too long. You guys need to get on the same page. And I would challenge my dad, but just once, just once, I'd go, Dad, this is on you, man. I know, but he's not asking. Like, that's my thing. Well, they talk about money.

I think they are talking about it. Yeah, but in conversations. How is he coming to you with money, Chase? Well, I mean, we're very into each other's you know he's making sure that i'm okay with you know my finances and i'm more worried about him and i think he wants them he wants them to be on the same page that's what i'm hearing um he's made that very clear and then that's up to him there's just some there's just some deep-rooted like trust issues when they had their own their own bank account and that is not yeah and i would say chase that's just not your arena to play in and here's another thing i and i would not triangle and it's sounding like a triangle situation with your dad and you triangling against your mom and

you don't want to be in that dynamic either so oh chase your heart is so good and your intentions are so good and i get it and like ken said maybe there's one good run at it of just like dad i can't sleep at night unless i say this for my own conscious like here it is and then chase i wouldn't and if your dad brings up conversations with your mom to you i would draw a boundary there too and say dad not not my problem i'm sorry i'm not the one to talk to you about. And I get y'all are talking money and all of that, but I would just be really careful. I just think as grown children, those boundaries, I just think that those conversations are really important because they can get tangled really quick. And I don't want responsibility

put on you, Chase, or you're feeling a level of responsibility that is not yours to carry. So I don't know if I'm being too harsh on that or too strict. No, I think there's a lot of wisdom there. And I don't know if the man-up conversation is a good idea now that you've made me almost rethink it. But what I mean is, here's what I think is happening. I think his dad's coming to him and he's kind of treating him like the counselor. He needs to go to a real counselor. And he's coming to the son because he's like, well, my son did this and I don't have

the cojones to do it myself. And there's a natural connection there. Yeah. Yeah. And I think that's, I think his dad's terrified of his mom. That, oh boy. That's probably a good truth. But, you know, I don't know. It's tough. Good heart, Chase. You got a good heart. Yeah, you're a good man. This is The Ramsey Show. Hey, you guys, health insurance costs are only moving one way, and that way isn't down. And if higher costs aren't enough, the wait times to see your doctor are longer, and it's harder than ever to get anything approved through the bureaucracy. So if you feel like the system is working against you, try a biblically-based alternative to health insurance, Christian Healthcare Ministries.

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a medical event. So listen, y'all, there's no better way to take care of health care costs. CHM programs start as low as $98 a month. So learn more today and join at chministries.org slash budget. That's chministries.org slash budget. Welcome back to The Ramsey Show. I'm Ken Coleman. I'm joined by Rachel Cruz.

And we're here for you this hour. The phone number to jump in is 888-825-5225. Taking your questions about money, about your work and income. I need to get more income. Side hustle, starting something. Can I make a move during the baby steps? Anything related to that, we would love to help you. 888-825-5225. So it is the season. I don't know if anybody talks that way anymore, but it's certainly the season is the season okay i was afraid you were gonna roll your eyes and go there's old man ken again just the toll free yeah call uh but uh i love you that's right never again by the way people were

on instagram going yeah ken uh i'll call the toll free number from my home phone i was like okay all right point made all right but i love christ. And as I look about the lobby here at Ramsey Solutions, we've got it all decorated. I got trees in my house. I love the Christmas music. So you have a fun little Christmas money lesson. We're going to play a game. We just made this up on the spot.

I love this. Go ahead. I'm going to say a money lesson, explain a money lesson, and Ken is going to try to guess the Christmas movie that that money lesson is from. And all of you on YouTube, play along. I'm going to number them

one through six. Okay. And try to put your guesses in as well before, before, okay? So here we go. Hold on, I got to get focused. These are going to be kind of short,

so I hope they're going to be good. Here we go. Number one, don't spend your work Christmas bonus on a pool until you actually have the money. Christmas vacation, the greatest Christmas movie of all time. Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding.

Yes. Number two, don't steal a credit card and try to check into a hotel. Home Alone. Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding. Wow, Home Alone 2. What's that? Lost in New York. Home Alone 2. You know what james got me on a technicality i missed that one okay stickler folks stickler number three this may be a little tough um i'm trying to like just

paint the lesson is even if there if there is no christmas presents a town can come together and still have happiness and joy boy i'm gonna go with my instinct here if i'm wrong james is waiting i'm gonna say it's a wonderful life no that's a that's a good one to have a money lesson though how the grinch stole christmas how the good job james see i'll honest with you. Don't know that I've seen that movie, folks. Okay, the next one, people would debate if it is a Christmas movie. I'm going to say it is. I think you've given me the clue. Yeah, yeah, that's a clue, I guess, yeah.

If you switch houses and do VRBO, make sure it's what you expect. Do your research. Come on, Kenneth, think. I'm going to give Ken about... This may be Stacey Coleman's favorite romantic movie. I'm going to go with The Holiday. Yeah! Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding.

Wow! I can't believe it. My wife is going to be very proud of me, folks. Well done. Okay, number five. This one's going to be kind of hard to explain. Let me see if I can do it. If there's a sign in the mall that says,

For someone special and you buy it they may not want or need the gift does james have it okay james hold on do you really i don't have it it's kind of broad oh look our audience even knows she knows she knows is that isf? Is it Elf? I was going to say that or Paul Blart Mall Cop. I wasn't sure which one it was going to be. Well done. Well done. Okay.

Thank you for the clue from the audience. Number six. I would not categorize as a family-friendly movie. Oh, boy. Wouldn't let my kids watch this one. It's one of Winston-Ice favorites, though. We think it's so funny. If you lie to...

Here's the last one. Don't lie to your family about not visiting them on vacation and saying that you're gonna go on vacation this is gonna be a hot take an unpopular take but it has now become my favorite christmas movie it has gone above national lampoon's christmas vacation it is for christmas i am a vince va. Ken! And I got to do a sound effect. I'm probably going to get in trouble for this, but I got to do it. Da-da-da!

That's where they're going to inoculate the kids in Burma. And he makes up Burmese in the bedroom while they're packing. It cracks me up. It is the funniest movie. That and one last one. Okay. Swaddle that baby. Oh, the Christmas service is just too much.

And then Graham Graham, but I'm going to stop there. Graham Graham, Betty White. No, that's not Betty White. No, it's not Betty White. Oh my gosh, you're right. Sorry. Yeah. Nope.

It's true though, but you know, they make a very good point. You can't spell lies without family. I mean, four Christmases's if you've not seen it adults i think it is an instant classic it is so funny yeah we watch it but it's a wonderful life is one of my favorite movies and mr bailey i didn't even i didn't think of that one to do a money but that's a great money i'll throw it well but see this is a part of the newest uh episode of the rachel cruise show so we're having a little fun with this but you actually do a deep dive on this yes yes yeah we did i mentioned a movie for next next year to go along with It's a Wonderful Life?

Miracle on 34th Street. Yes, I haven't seen that in years. I know, and these are classics. Now, would you do the black and white version, the original? The original, yeah, because it's really sweet. There's great character lessons in that. James, can I also throw another movie out for next year? Yes.

I think it's a Christmas movie. I'm pretty sure the booth and the audience, you jumped ahead. Would it kill you to wait? Would it kill you to not interrupt me? I was setting it up. I think Die Hard is a Christmas movie. That's what I think. You think it is? Austin says yes.

James says, the collective booth says yes. All dudes, because you're all dudes. All the women, no. It happened at Christmas. It was a Christmas party. It's not a Christmas party. I guess it's like the holiday. People would argue,

is it a Christmas movie or not? All right, there you go. A couple of good things. Lots of lessons to learn. God, it's a wonderful life. Now let me turn this to real money stuff for people. Yes.

What do you know from the data, and you've been coaching people for a long time, what are the biggest causes of Christmas mistakes, money mistakes? Oh. What would you say? Obviously overspending.

Yeah, for sure. 25% of Americans are still paying for last Christmas. What? Yep. An article came out. Yep. Last week from Wallet Hub. Yeah.

A quarter of Americans. I mean, it's unbelievable that they're still. Do you think that we as Americans spend too much per capita? What I mean by that is per household. Like within reason. Your budget's different than everybody else's. My budget's different, right? People are overspending.

So I did an interview today. You would love this, Ken. They're writing an article comparing 1950s Christmas to today. And what do they see? Well, they're interviewing about today so i didn't get all the historical facts but you're a history buff i feel like you could go back in those days but but we were talking about and like the expectation of lifestyle in general yeah from for sure the 50s even the 80s average square foot of a home yeah you know the

cars i mean everything about it just our natural baseline of lifestyle is high. And that bleeds over for sure into the Christmas season. And so it is, it's this expectation and it's the buy-in, I think, too, because this gets me, it's the stuff you don't plan, right? Like we do a budget and we plan out, hey, here's how much we're going to spend on Christmas. And then, you know, a party comes up. this happened to me last week and it's a bunch of girls i know yeah and it's a favorite things party i'm like well i want to go but yeah i bring two items i mean they're 20 bucks each so it's like 40 bucks that's 40 bucks that you know we didn't plan exactly i had to run out the other night for josie she's like dad tomorrow i've got

my secret santa at school and i gotta get this get this, this, this, and this. And I'm going, what are we talking about? Get her an apple. That's what they did in the 50s. I'm kidding. I didn't say that. I wanted to. I know. I wanted to.

I remember. You probably don't remember this, but some of you are old enough to remember when the Tickle Me Elmo first came out. Oh, I do remember it, yes. People were punching each other. Do you remember those videos? Wrestling. Yes. Like jumping off the third, you know, like a WWE move over this gift that your kid doesn't even know about. I mean, it's wild.

I mean, that's what's crazy. And I do miss a little bit of that hectic shopping. I feel like there were always news stories. The Furby, was it one year? Like, I feel like we had all these like toys and you'd watch the news and watch all these crazy people. I don't know. Go crazy over a toy so yeah I do think it's I think it's not being able to plan well because you're trying to do everything and when stuff comes up you just add on and or not

having the margin but continuing to live how you want to live and there's a point that we have to be grown-ups to say I know I just can't do that know, and it's hard to say no to ourselves, but. Oh my goodness. It is tough. I think, and here's the other thing. Look, this whole holiday is supposed to be about what you give, not what you get. Yeah. And if we're giving different things, you know, like we could fix the whole thing by changing everything to all you can buy is one ugly Christmas sweater for everybody you

know. And then it becomes more about the fun of just that. Right. But we've made it about stuff and I don't know that we're ever going to get it back. But hang in there. Please don't make any crazy money decisions. It's going to be okay. And don't be like those people that Rachel was talking about that are still paying for last

year's Christmas. Oh, that gives me heartburn. Cousin Eddie. Where are the tums? Where's the eggnog? Fell in a well. Eyes went crust. Mule, mule. Go back. There it is. Oh, I'd hold off on that. She's got a little lip fungus we haven't identified. This is The Ramsey Show. Welcome back to The Ramsey Show. I'm Ken Coleman. I'm joined by Rachel Cruz, and we're here to help you win in your money and in your work life.

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helps us get in front of people who may be struggling, certainly this time of year, as we head into the Christmas season, a little bit strapped financially, maybe heading into the new year and wanting to break free of all that debt and get a good start. We'd love to help. So please let people know. 888-825-5225. Let's stay right here in the back of the woods, if you will. I don't know what I'm saying. In our neck of the woods. There it is.

Nashville. Nashville, Tennessee is where Kate joins us. Kate, how can we help? Hi, Kate. Hello. How are you? You're on with Ken and Rachel. What's going on?

I was recommended to call into the radio show to get some advice about my husband and my financial situation. It's more on my end. I moved out on my own two years ago. We just got married a couple months ago, and I've just been struggling to find consistent work that pays enough to the point where I've been on and off unemployed over the past nine months. And obviously, unemployment brings on debt, and I'm trying to figure out how to work with that while still being unemployed. Okay. So what kind of debt have you accumulated?

I have some credit card and just some medical and other general debt. Okay. And what kind of work would you love to be doing? If we could just make it happen for you today, what would that be and what would that income look like, realistically? Ideally, I would say farming. Realistically, I went through a course for data analytics almost four years ago and have not been able to find a job in that yet. Okay. Can I ask a question? What's causing all the unemployment for you?

You said, I'm having a hard time keeping a job. Some of it has been living on my own due to the rising costs. I've had to look for other jobs just to stay afloat. I recently was diagnosed with a thyroid illness and realized that's part of what's made me be unemployed is I have difficulty getting out of bed in the morning and showing up to work. Okay. Now, you said that you've kind of moved on from thing to thing. Is that what I took from that answer? Because you were trying to make more money, so you're job hopping? Yes. But you're not hopping from something to something. You're just leaving something then trying to find something else, sounds like. Well, I have been moving from one

job to the other when I've been able to, but sometimes I've been let go due to the illness and had to find a job from being unemployed. Okay, so let's just hone in what we need to do right now to get some income for you. Now that you've got the thyroid condition diagnosed, and I'm assuming you're getting some doctor's care on this, and can we presume that you've got the thyroid condition diagnosed, and I'm assuming you're getting some doctor's care on this, and can we presume that you're going to be getting better and that energy issue is going to be taking care of itself? Is that true? That's what I'm hoping for.

Okay, so we don't know. So the issue is would you be better served doing maybe a remote job, work from home where it's kind of that is the thing they're expecting? Is that a better fit for you? That's what I've been trying to find for almost four years now. Well, sweetheart, let me just tell you something, and I want to say this as kind as I can. You're in Nashville, and this is one of the hottest job markets in the country. When you look at states and their states' economies, and we look at at the general economy there are a lot of jobs out there and and if you can't find something there is something going on with the way you're looking

or the way that you are actually applying and getting into the situation because you should be able to find something right now with all the online freelance work that's out there or you can even be a personal assistant if I'm a, Kate. You know, you could pick up two clients and do that. What's your husband doing? You said you've been married a few months. What's his status? He is a full-time student. He's about to start his final semester to graduate with a bachelor's in business administration. So he's not working? He works part-time, but very limited part-time because he is a senior. So you guys are broke and barely making it by?

Basically. Okay. Yeah, Kate, I think the part of the formula that I think just has to be the one part you really focus on is this income side, Kate. And like Ken said, there's a lot of jobs that you can do from home. It's either going to have to be that or your husband is going to have to say, hey, I can't go to school right now because my family doesn't have money. My wife is sick and can't work. And I can't, I don't care if it's my, I'm a senior. I have to pay my light bill and my rent and my mortgage. You know what I mean? Like there's a level of adult choices here that are not fun, but that have to happen to survive in

our world today. And I'm not talking about the luxuries of life. I'm talking about you guys got to pay bills. I mean, to keep the lights on and the rent paid. And so he may have to stop school. I mean, he may have to pause, Kate. Like, that's how, like, urgent I want you guys to feel. Unless you can find something, which I have confidence you can, but it's that urgency. You looking for four years and him staying in school full-time, working part-time, that doesn't happen.

You can't do that. Does that make sense? I don't have a clear story with the four years, I was looking for my specific ideal role. Oh, okay, gotcha. Which is what? I have been working since then, but it's been the lower income, unable to get decent savings kind of jobs. Okay, well, but wait a second. You can, okay, so the ideal job is in farming, and I get that.

And I think when you're getting healthy, we want to get you on a path to that. But Rachel's right. Your hubs has got to be working two jobs. He doesn't have a thyroid condition. And the degree, we can get back to that degree. It will be there. He doesn't even need the degree. Honestly, a business degree doesn't guarantee anything. I don't want to kind of pour salt in a wound here, but Rachel's 100% correct. He's working two jobs, maybe three jobs to get you guys in the income where it needs to be to pay off the debt. Weekend, Saturdays, Sundays, full time. He's working knots up. And I will tell you, you need to be looking at customer service roles until the thyroid thing gets under control. I think it's very hard for you to go to a Walmart or a Target or someplace like that

when you've got this physical condition that is obviously sapping your energy and untold other issues. Here's the point. You can be working online, tutoring, customer care. Those jobs are everywhere. Data input. Data input. I mean, like anything. Yes, anything, Kate.

Even if you're bringing in $25,000 a year, that's something. Do you know what I'm saying? Like, there needs to be... It's what the two of you can do. Yeah. This is not on you. Yeah, this is not on you fully. Yeah.

So he needs... So yeah, you both... I think... How old are you guys? I'm 25 and he's 23. Okay. Yeah. So yeah, this is... By the way, Kate, one of the questions you need

to ask is, will you help me? It's a question that we don't want to ask, right? You know people. You guys, you're young. You've come from a network, a connection to families in the national area. You've just got to go, hey, this is where I'm at. I've got a thyroid condition. It's now diagnosed. I'm getting treatment, but this is where we are. Hubs is in school. We need to make money. We'll do anything. And you've got to start putting the word out. Do you understand what I'm saying? This is not applying online and just hoping your resume makes it through the matrix. This is you talking to people, posting on social media, go, hey, I'm looking for X amount of hours. This is what I... Raise your hand out there. Yeah. You got to raise your hand is a

great way of saying that. Kate, you got to get after it. Which takes humility, right? I'm like, to your point, we hate doing it sometimes. It's hard to ask for help. Yeah. But you guys are in that situation where you need it. Because how much is your rent a month, Kate? It's $700, so it's not that much. Okay. It's a lot when you're broke and you guys aren't bringing anything in. Yeah, and then you got food. I mean, yeah, I mean, it's all of this. So, yeah, any amount of money, Kate, to get you guys

in a stable place, but that's probably going to mean him working Saturdays and Sundays and nights. I'm like, that's... And bartend. Be a waiter. Like, find the places that you make some good money to.

I hope your husband watches this. Have him watch it too. Hey, Hubs, listen to me. You could come to my neighborhood in Franklin and say, I'll put your lights up, your Christmas lights,

outdoor for 200 bucks. I'll pay you so fast your head will spin. I don't want to do it. That's right. But there's something to be done right now. That's right. But there's something to be done right now. That's right.

That's right. So this is, we are urgent because we must provide. And then it'll cycle out. Thank you, Kate. This is The Ramsey Show. Welcome back to The Ramsey Show, where we help you win in your life, your money, your work, and your relationships. I'm Ken Coleman. Rachel Cruz joins me.

And we're in the Christmas spirit, so Merry Christmas. We had fun. That was a little fun exercise, the game that we played. Oh, earlier, yes, our Christmas movie trivia. Christmas movie trivia. Between you and James. Yeah. All spot on.

Yeah, absolutely. All right, back to the phones we go. Brian is now joining us in Danbury, Connecticut. Brian, how can we help? Hey, all. Thanks for taking the call. So my family is expanding, thankfully. We are in the process.

We purchased a new home. We're in the process of moving to that home. We're in the fortunate situation where we didn't have to sell our existing home in order to purchase the new home. And so now we're sort of left with a question of what to do, you know, whether we should sell it, whether we should rent it out. We did buy the home pre-COVID, and we bought in an area where a lot of New Yorkers have moved to. So our property value has increased, thankfully, because of that. So yeah, that's sort of where we are. We're just wondering what to do with the home. Okay. How much do you owe on that home, the old home?

So the mortgage we have on the home outstanding is about $560,000. $560,000. And how much would it sell for? We've been told it could sell around $1.2, $1.3. Amazing. Okay. And how much is the new house? How much of a mortgage did you take out for that? New house, the mortgage is 680. 680. Okay. So if my math serves me correctly, Brian, you could sell your house, your old house, current house, and pay off the new house, correct? Something like that. That's the dream. Now, why are you chuckling? Where did the chuckle come from?

So, I guess, you know, I guess two things. Number one, you know, we are changing, moving towns, and we're sort of, there's a little bit of emotional attachment, I'll say, to the existing house, you know, like visions of moving back and doing something with a property or something. But also just a question of what's the right investment, you know, does it make sense to hold on to it as a rental or does it make sense to just sell it? How far away are you moving from it? It's about an hour. It's not too far. And how much do you guys make a year, Brian? My wife and I are both in tech. So we gross around $340 a year. Nice. Do you want to be a long-distance landlord? Because an hour is still, like an hour is just at the point of a pain in the you-know-what. And, can I add this, Brian?

And you guys said you have an emotional attachment to the house. Some family is going to move in there with a dog and three kids. Oh, boy. You're going to be like, oh, this is it. Speaking of emotions. And you're not going to want to move back into that place. I mean, honestly, to move back in after three or four other families have lived there, it just, the romanticism of it leaves.

I love this. What's your favorite, what's the favorite part of the house? Give us an emotional attachment. It's, I don't know how to, mean we're in the christmas season the best i can probably describe it is just like a nice cozy house and a great neighborhood yeah i ended the cold effect like it's just worth 1.3 million yeah there's that i know i know the other i don't know if it's helpful is our mortgage you know part of it i guess is because we bought pre-covid um and mortgage mortgage rate was like three percent um you know the the mortgage monthly we're paying you know with

that doesn't really factor majorly into my into my thought process because for you guys, do you have any other debt? Do you owe stuff on your cars, credit cards? No. No. No. Okay, Brian, listen, here's where I would say to keep it. If you called in, Brian, and you're like, we're making a million a year, I'd say, you know what? You guys live on nothing. Pay off off that house pay off the other one keep it as a rental because it's yours and you own it outright in three years whatever whatever whatever but this keeps you i mean 560 000 on one 680 on the other it's keeping you guys in debt and so when it when debt comes into play there's a lot of this that's just, I don't know, it just adds on, to me, more stress. And the idea of, oh, it's just passive income.

The renters will pay. They'll pay them more. Like, all of that that people believe about rentals is just not true. There's more of a headache. Now, if it's all paid for and you can take on the risk of something, that's something else. Now, I just had a thought, Rachel. Yeah. And I don't think this changes anything, but I got to ask, Brian. I mean,

Danbury, Connecticut, pretty historic place, as I recall. I've never been there, but pretty historic. I'm guessing pretty high income. Yeah. Okay. What would the rent... Nice New England towns, that sort of thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I actually want to go sometime. But what would you say the rent is, the market? Do you know what the market rent is, what you could get for your house? We've been told because the market is so constricted right now that we could get around $5,500, $6,000 a month. And what's the mortgage on it? Like $3,300 a month. That's what tax is. All right. It's not changing my opinion. I just wonder if it changes my co-host's opinion on that. That's interesting.

You're doubling up now. Now you still got the pain and it's an hour away. I have another question. You said the hope is we return. When would that be? When would you return if that was even an option? I mean, we'd talk. I know.

It'd be like five, 10-year timeline. Oh, okay. That sort of thing. All right. I just wonder, does that change your mind at all? Honestly I know, it'd be like, you know, five, 10 year timeline. Oh, okay. That sort of time. All right. I just wonder, does that change your mind at all? Honestly, Brian, it doesn't. And I know people are going to go on YouTube like, Rachel, y'all, you're crazy. Because here's what I think, Brian, and I'm usually a glass half full kind of person,

but I'm just thinking, oh my gosh, what if in 18 months, 24 months, who months who like what if something happens to the market what if one of you loses your job what like without like this thing that is supposed to be so great and in a perfect world it's great where brian in a perfect world you could sell it bank 220 000 that's what i'm doing every day of the week by the way putting that yes half that you know maxing out retirement putting some of that in a Vanguard account letting it grow going on vacation on just the interest I mean like you know what I'm saying like your life

I agree with you it's all of it I would sell it Brian and I get that it's a really sentimental like I get that make some videos before you leave yeah and can I tell you this Brian have y'all moved into the new house yet not yet no and is it an upgrade of a house would you say like Yeah. And can I tell you this, Brian? Have y'all moved into the new house yet? Not yet, no. And is it an upgrade of a house, would you say? Like, it's nicer?

It's a little nicer. It's importantly just more space because the family's growing. So that's the principal reason why we're here. Okay. So do you, like, love the new house, though? Are you excited about it? Yeah. No, it's a great it's a great okay wife and i are sort of the people that are really sticklers about about things and this this house check those okay and i'm only saying that brian because my husband and i when we built and moved in in 19 2019 our house we had only lived in one other house it had been about 11 years i brought all three kids home from the hospital in this house it It's big.

It's right when Winston and I moved as a married couple. We had spent a decade of, you know, and all of it. And I cried and I took pictures of every bed. I mean, all of it. And I just told Winston, I was like, I'm just, I'm so sad. I am so, I'm so sad. But yet we're building this home that we're so excited about. But I'm so sad.

I'm so sad. Brian, can I tell you this? This is not an exaggeration. We moved in two to three days later i had to go back to the house because we forgot something in the garage i had to pick up and i walked in the kitchen and i was like i want to go back to my new house i flipped a switch and and again and you may not but i'm telling you when you make the change, the glamour and the, and I understand the sentimental factor, but it seems just to, I don't know for me, it always be special, but it's not a reason I would keep it for $560,000 a day.

I think you're so right. I'm with Rachel. Take the cash, keep the memories. And go and run off into the sunset with $220,000 in cash after a paid-for home, Brian. And then think about this. Y'all's whole income is yours. Huge income. $3,000 rent's not even going to be a thing.

Or $6,000. You know what I'm saying? There's just so much to do. That brand new house or that new house for you guys is a massive investment that's paid for in Connecticut. Yeah. I like it. That Connecticut real estate, by the way. Oh, I can only imagine.

You ever been to Connecticut? She doesn't know. No, I was going to say Boston, but that's Massachusetts. Yeah, okay. I'll show her the map. Don't go anywhere. More coming. This is The Ramsey Show.