Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, broadcasting from the Dollars Car Rental Studios, it's the Dave Ramsey Show where debt is dumb. Cash is king in the paid off home mortgage has taken the place of the BMW as the status symbol of choice. I'm Dave Ramsey, your host. You jump in, we'll talk about your life and your money. It's a free call at triple eight eight two five five two two five. Chris Hogan Ramsey, personality number one, best selling author is my co-host.

You jump in, we'll talk to you about your life and your money.

As promised. Krystal's with us in Philadelphia. Hi, Crystal. Welcome to The Dave Ramsey Show.

Thank you for taking my question. Sure. What's up? I am calling because I recently inherited an annuity and I am not sure if I should just go ahead and pay off my health or if I should go ahead and roll it over and investing. How much is it? It is one hundred and thirty nine thousand dollars. What do you own your home? I owe one hundred and nineteen thousand dollars.

And have you gotten a tax person? Look at it and see how much you'll be taxed when you cash this out. I actually just contacted one of your recommendations and the first item today, but they had to reschedule the time for tomorrow. I also had spoken to three of your smart disapproves, which I liked.

So I haven't picked one yet. Good. I'm glad.

I'm glad it's hard to choose. So the you were named beneficiary on the annuity?

Yes. It was divided three ways between me and my brothers.

Crystal, who left this to you? My father.

If I move, I think with you being named a beneficiary, it's probably going to be more like life insurance than it is going to be like an inherited IRA. I don't think you're going to have taxes on it, but I'm not sure. I'm not sure. I think I think because you're name the beneficiary on. I think it's just going to come straight to you. I'm not very good at taxes, though.

So the tax people are all out there listening right now going, oh, God, you know, but anyway, because.

So for sure. Check me out. I promise.

OK, so I'm paying off my house unless I've got a 40 percent tax on this thing, if it's got a big tax on it or some kind, and you can roll it to something, which I don't think you can do. I know you can't roll it into an IRA. You could roll it into a variable annuity. I'm going to say nine times out of ten. Unless you get just some ridiculously horrible information about the taxes, I am going to take it out even if I got a little bit of tax and pay it off, pay off.

Out. Okay.

Yeah, OK. Crystal, how much is your mortgage payment right now?

Mortgage and taxes is roughly 30, 50 percent.

Can you imagine what kind of blessing it is for your father to have left that to you to pay off your home like you get the deed, you own it, and now you have thirteen hundred and fifty dollars extra in your budget?

I just had a happy feeling in my heart. Yes. This is this has been a rough thing because my dad was handicapped 22 years ago and I took care of him for 15 years. My brother just took care of him for the last segment. We had a family member. That was his power of attorney. Yes, ma'am. And never invested his annuity into realizing the amount of money that it could have been. Right. What I was actually expecting was a little shocking.

About seven years ago when that person passed away, he went to live with another family member, a brother who was his power of attorney, and he didn't invest the money either. So this money grew for 22 years at one percent interest. So that hurts a bit.

Yeah, yeah. But now we're still here. And the good news is your home is going to be paid off.

That's right. And when you get ready to leave something to someone, that home will have appreciated and it'll it'll make a difference. So at any rate, you know, this is one of those things. Let that go. Just because your father thought of you and was intentional enough to leave something to you and you get a chance to write, continue writing the story together.

Ben is with us in Knoxville. Hi, Ben. Welcome to The Dave Ramsey Show. I appreciate your taking my call. Sure. How can we help? So I am engaged and I'll be getting married here in April. Yeah. Thank you. We're both very excited and fortunately, we're both going into the marriage on Baby six and our combined income will be about hundred thousand. And while wondering how you would suggest to managing our individual wants within our marriage, for example, I'm a big guy and so that's my hobby.

And my fiance likes clothes and furniture and stuff like that.

Well, the good news is you don't have any debt except your house and you've got a lot of money to buy guns and clothes.

So, I mean, you used to call me up with this problem making, I mean, 300000 hours of student loan debt because I would have said no more guns and, you know, very few clothes. So, yeah, but yeah, I mean, the good news is you can sit down together and I, I will just tell you, every gun I buy cost me at least two passes.

So we have a we have a formula for Ramsey house and I'm with you. I got a lot of guns and you know what that means. She's got a lot of purses. So, you know, you're just going to do some of that right there.

And all kidding aside, and I think you just talk about it and, you know, it would not be fair for you to spend, you know, three times more than she's spending on those things. But both of you have some fun money category room in this budget you described. Yeah.

And Ben, is this a first marriage for both of you? Yes. OK, that's fantastic, man. I'm going to tell you this, have you all done the premarital counseling? We're starting that night. OK, that's imperative and really dig in to that, get on the same page because financially it sounds like you guys are in sync now. It's a matter of as I tell people all the time, you've got to speak French, right? It's not you.

Her in you is we. And so that mindset of the muscles you all have already been flexing, learning to communicate and flexing is your biggest problem is, is that you're both used to having your own life and you're now going to come home and lives.

And that's going to require some that's going to be a little bit stressful.

Yeah, a lot of the guard's feelings here about what we're going to put you into Ramsey plus and that hook you up with the every dollar budget and put you guys through financial peace. University is part of your pre marriage counseling. We're gonna give you a wedding gift. Yes. So you hold on and we'll give you a year in Ramsey Plus and Kelly, I'll pick up and do that.

Now, what she'll do is jump on that every dollar budget and lay out a pretend budget as if you were married. That's good. And then it'll give you something to talk about in the marriage counseling. So you go go and have some budget fights right now. Yeah. So but, you know, going to spend what you know, but again, the communication on it, being able to lay it out, looking at the windshield, you have a common goal, baby.

Step six paying the house off to. That's right. So there's only three things you can do with money. You can spend it to enjoy it. Yeah, you can give it and you can invest it. And you need to be on the same page on how much is going to what. And there should be plenty of room to do all three of those things. With what you have described here. You guys are making a lot of money.

You're doing really well. Congratulations, seriously, that's going to be good. But they you all have a streak of independence because you've lived as grown ups with a lot of money. Now you're going to have to combine that and that's going to be emotionally there's got to be some friction with that. It goes with the territory. Should I just put it all out on the table, work the friction, work the friction. It's going to be great for your communication in your new marriage.

It put the Lord first and then the center and all the other stuff will work out just fine. This is the Dave Ramsey Show. I heard a statistic recently that absolutely blew my mind in the US alone, over 3000 people die every day without life insurance. What are people thinking? I don't understand how taking care of your family isn't a top priority. Use the New Year as a reason to do something right, like protecting your family term. Life insurance is something that every family needs.

It's not complicated. It's not expensive. And Zander Insurance is the only place I recommend go to Zanda Dotcom or call them at 800 three five six 42 82. That's Zander Dotcom.

Chris Hogan Ramsey personality is my co-host today, open phones and triple eight eight two five five two two five. If you feel like you've never saved enough money to pay off all your debt after a year like 20 20, most of America feels the same way. We're all hitting reset Ramzi Plus's. Our step by step plan helps you get some really quick wins. We're going to give you a 90 day plan day by day, week by week, step by step.

Everything's in there. And Ramsey plus, of course, includes Financial Peace University. And you can do a free trial and see if you want to do the whole year. The 90 day plan will get you there. It's never too late to get a great start. Right. Get a get a fast start. Get a great start. Come out. I mean, when you come out of the gate fast, boom. Here we go. All right, Ramsey.

Plus, you try for free, do the free trial and see if it works for you. You're going to be blown away. Dave Ramsey, dotcom slash reset, Dave Ramsey, Dotcom, all you have to lose some debt crystals in Anchorage.

Crystal, how are you?

Hi. Good. Thanks so much for taking my call. Sure. What's up? Currently, my husband and I are have no debt except for a little bit of a car payment and our mortgage. We've got a steady income, but we kind of struggle just getting by check the check and wondering what is the best way to kind of get out of that rut?

What's your income? Oh, about six thousand, two thousand a year. OK, how much house payment? Seventeen hundred watched your car payment. About I do about three hundred dollars a month on it. You would do what? Your car payment. You have a payment amount. Yeah, I do about three hundred dollars and I go a little bit extra, OK, but I mean, your car payment is actually if you don't do, what's the actual name to ten?

OK, that's what I'm asking.

All right, good. OK, so that's OK because you're the extras of choice, you know, and that's not a bad choice because we're going to get your car paid off. It's going to be some we're going to hear in a minute. But but we're going to put a lot more than 300 on it. But anyway. All right.

So you're not giving me any numbers here that are causing my brain to explode like you've got major problems, which means that you're probably like most people, including me, when I first started this, in that by not having really good organization with my money and every detail out laid out in the chaos eats these dollars for breakfast.

And so a written budget, a detailed budget will make you feel like you've gotten a race, because I'll give you an example if you. But how can you guys get paid twice a month? Yeah, OK, so I take home pay check is how much? Three thousand dollars. OK, so we got six thousand dollars. Minus house payment, minus car payment is three. That's true, too, yeah, yeah. So I got four thousand dollars left.

Is that feels kind of weird doesn't it. It does. Seems like right this second you're asking yourself.

I know I got water and I know I got I got to be kidding. I don't know. I've got electricity and I know I've got food and I know I got some insurance I got to buy here and there. But you're starting to ask yourself where the flip is money going? And that's kind of what I'm asking. Yeah. So, yeah, you got to get on a game plan and when you get on a budget, you are gonna feel like you got it right at Crystal.

I'm going to tell you, as I started off on Dave's plan some almost 16 years ago, that is exactly was the thing. That was the awakening for me. I was doing too much stupid in grocery stores and in restaurants. And so getting down to the root of it, you take a look at some bank statements out, go back and look at the last three months and find out that category where you're bleeding money. And it could be online shopping, it could be grocery stores, it could be eating out.

Whatever it is, you're going to do an analysis, you're going to see it. But you cannot manage money with a rearview mirror.

Right. Can't wait till it's over and then go, wow, that's Mark.

You have to tell it what to do before it leaves on paper on purpose, before the month begins every single month and in agreement with your spouse so they don't do something else.

That's exactly right. And I was just going to say with that, when you find that trouble spot, go to the cash envelopes on it. I'm telling you, having the budget like Dave's talking about beforehand and then having the cash, I'm told, is going to give you more control. And it's going to feel like you gave yourself a raise because guess what?

You did jump on every dollar and start using the it's free to use just every dollar dot com, download the app and start using that budgeting app with you and your husband. And you got to start working on that tonight. You're going to feel like you got it right. There's a reason you're leaving. You know, there's just no intentionality behind the dollars and no one does.

By the way, you're not like you're not, like, horrible. I got great. Nobody does. All right. You have sat down with people for many, many years. What is the typical the area of the budget that people are absolutely lying about? What is it the one where you go, this isn't real. Eating out. Eating out? Yeah, I would agree. I'd say eating out of the grocery store because with the stores we have now, they spend less at the grocery store.

They know they spend a lot at restaurants, but when they find out what they really spend, they go, oh my God, yeah, yeah, yeah.

I remember I was sitting in a financial peace group leading small group one time years and years ago. And, you know, we're kind of going around talking about the lesson that night. And we're like, OK, why? Why have you not been able to fund retirement, which was an investment lesson? One of the questions we're just talking about, you know, why don't you feel like you've been able to do retirement and there's an old country boy sitting in the thing and he goes, yeah, we looked at it.

It's been a twelve hundred dollars a month in restaurants. I know where our retirement's been going. We've been eating it.

Bob died laughing, but he's been eating it. That I'm telling you, that's what a lot of people do with it. They eat their future.

Yeah, and that's scary. And you know what? That's something we can control because what couldn't we say?

I love restaurants. A lot of my I've got good friends. You and I have good friends, personal friends that we share that are world class chefs that own the restaurants. We go to their place. Yeah, I love that kind of stuff. I'm not against restaurants. But from a budgeting standpoint, when you're calling me and saying I'm broke, I have no money, I will tell you that 90 percent of what you spend in the restaurant, the money is spent on entertainment.

Ten percent is your actual food cost. Yeah. So go home and makes makes makes some sense, makes some paints and. Well, and I'm going to tell you this even Drew, throughout all this situation with the pandemic of people being at home more, you know, utilizing that found out what they were spending, they really did it because people were like, well, you've got to where am I going to this money, where this money come from?

That's right. And it's all it was. You're not going time all the time. So be intentional, be smart. And again, starting to set some things, cut it back a little bit of crystal.

You're not different in that regard. I don't know if it's food that you're spending it on, but you will discover it when you go back and look at the statements like Chris suggested. And when you start writing it down and try to make it behave. Hint for everyone is starting their new budget this month. Whatever you think you're spending at the grocery store, you're wrong.

Mm hmm. It's more than that. I agree.

And so if you think you're spending five hundred dollars, you better put 750 in there because you're going to find that it's more you've you've been lying to yourself so long that, you know, I really do do that. I've had these people tell me these ridiculous number. We make it on fifty dollars a month. No, you don't. You can't even look ridiculous. So, you know, but but because here's the thing.

That is a category that if you underfunded, you will go back and either break your budget or you'll have to go back and correct your budget in the middle of the month as you're learning how to budget your first couple of months. If you'll go ahead and overfunding, you don't feel like you failed. You can always cut your food budget back in future months. It's a good call for the first two to three months.

You're doing your budget when you've never done one in years over fund your grocery store budget because your category, because you're all why everyone spends more than they think they're going to do.

And you people that are super nerds and you do the coupons and you've got all these apps on your phone and all the stuff, you still spend more than you think you have because there's something about denial at the grocery store that we didn't. We're in denial about what we spent. No, that's a good point. And at the reset event, if you hadn't watched it, you need to go check it out. I gave three tips, which is make a grocery list, only buy what's on the list and stick to the dollar amount.

You said you were going to spend. I'll give you a fourth one. Don't go grocery shopping when you're hungry. That truth. Big truth. As if I have ever done anything. But there you go. Those burrito's I bought from Sam's weren't that good when I got home. Well, you bought to save two hundred and seventy. I know. I was hungry. I was hungry. This is the Dave Ramsey Show. At Takeover's, we believe a great pair of cowboy boots won't just make you look taller.

They'll give you the confidence boost that'll make you feel taller to attack us. We make traditional cowboy boots for men and women that look great and feel great so you can walk into a big meeting or out on the town with comfort and confidence. And because we sell directly to you with no middleman to mark things up, you're going to get great quality at a great value. Find your parent takeover's dotcom, slash Ramsey and walk taller.

Chris Hogan Ramsey personality is my co-host today, open phones, a triple eight eight to five five two two five. Elizabeth is in Tyler, Texas. Hi, Elizabeth. Welcome to The Dave Ramsey Show. Hi. How are you doing today? Better than I deserve. What's up? I have been asked to take over during the Treasurer for my Property Owners Association. And are you there?

Yes, ma'am. I'm sorry. OK, sorry. Incinerates. I've been asked to do that and I was curious about personal liability. If I should be concerned in any way in regards to that, you would need to ask an attorney.

I'm not one. I do own many, many, many pieces of real estate in ways and most of them are a hot mess.

Yeah. And so there's always conflict and drama and gossip and stupidity and everything else.

You would, as I understand the law and again, I'm not a lawyer, so, you know, it's a legal advice question that you're really asking.

But as I understand the law, you would not have any liability unless there was misbehavior.

Now, obviously, if you bought yourself a new grill for your backyard out of that money and you would obviously be liable for the misbehavior or if there was gross negligence, you did a horrible job beyond the pale of what any kindergartner could do, then you might be held liable.

Most of the ways carry errors and omissions, insurance for their board of directors. And so if a resident filed suit against them for, you know, mismanagement or negligence or fraud or whatever else, the E.A. will step up, the insurance company will step up and defend them legally. So most of the time you're covered.

And even if you're not, you mean you out have some legal fees, but you would not be held to if somebody didn't like the color of paint that was chosen for the front bench.

Right. Which will happen. Yes.

The then the then you're not liable for that. Yeah.

Elizabeth, Dave's not allowed to be on any kind of committee like that. People, people, people would end up crying. I'm just going to tell you.

But I think, you know, do you have a lot of time, do you want to do this or do people just want you to do it?

Well, it's so it's an interesting situation. I live in a neighborhood where I have an airway and a play and property under the collar. It's just for my street, OK, because there's certain expenses that we are responsible for just on our street. Yes, ma'am. And so this is for the Kioa. And so I don't I'm not so sure that we have errors in the system because it's such a small thing.

Yeah, well, it would have to be the people on your street. Or the way that you pay money to play, someone would have to get pissed off and sue you. Yeah, from a practical standpoint, before you would have any liability.

So as long as everything's fairly low drama, you're probably don't have any issue.

But I can't make that promise in a nature way. As you can tell, I can't stand the thing.

And no, no reflection on you, Miss Elizabeth.

You said like a sweet piece of sweetheart, I can tell, but to many of the people involved in them really don't have a life.

And so would you tell me what's the percentage of people that need to be incarcerated whose two percent or as a grown to are not incarcerated? Oh, in institutions the same thing. Yeah, well, sort of. Yes, yes. Yeah. It's a higher percentage in nature. Yeah. Oh yeah. No I'm not, I'm just not a fan. I'm, I'm a ha. Yeah. OK, but yeah.

Here we go. Kelly, Kelly Kelly is in Atlanta. Hi Kelly. How are you. Hi, good, how are you? Better than I deserve. What's up? Thank you for taking my call. It's like a blessing. I have a question about my. OK, so I'm a stay at home mom and I married my husband makes about 60 a year as an essential worker. His career has the potential to grow his salary to about 70 K within the next five years.

We have two children under three and I currently have an add in an essential field with the potential to get a B.S. in engineering after we complete our baby. Step number three. That would be no longer than two years from now. We are currently paying off our house and that's the only debt that we have, which is about one hundred and fifty five KW to pay off his mid 20s, early 30s. And we're wondering out of these three options, which might be more advantageous for us financially speaking, the first option would be if I go back to school and I get a B.S. in engineering in less than five years to jump start a career with a higher salary while maintaining our lifestyle at only 60 to 70 a year with extra toys, other baby steps, the next option would be should we maintain his salary and career and the lifestyle that we have now?

Or the third option would be, would it be better to go back to work part time and try adding more to his salary? The reason for us changing head of household would be because we feel like one parent should be at home with the kids. But, you know, there's always the possibility of just adding a whole salary and we can both be at home on time. Mm hmm.

Yeah, well, I mean, there's two or three things going on. It's not just math. If it's just math, the answer is how do you make the most money?

Mm hmm. Yes, sir.

And then you've got to say, OK, but what's the what's the trade off on the way that makes the most money?

What and where do you what do you want to be doing career wise as well as wealth building wise as well as parenting? Mm hmm. Five years from now. 10 years from now. And which of these decisions takes you to that person?

And so so we call it around here. When we're setting business goals and we're doing strategic analysis in the business, we say, what's the desired future? Yeah, where do you want to be in ten years?

And then what must be true? That's not true today for us to arrive at that desired future. And in your case, it could it be a degree could it be a change out in your husband who's at home, who's not? Could it be a different way to do engineering? Could it be? I don't know. I mean, what has to be true for you to hit your parenting goals, your career goals and your relationship and, well, build your wealth building goals?

You know, the closest and those things need to be all three laid out there at the end and then you start backing out of it in reverse, engineer it and say, OK, what must be true? That's not true now. And you're kind of saying that because you're saying I've got to go back, get a degree. If I'm going to go this way, I need to go get the best of them. I do this just it just it just the associates.

Right.

And what must be true if we want a parent at home? Well, he might quit if you go make more money and come home and be late on dad. That's what must be true. These are things that must be true with the different options. But then if you do those things, you look back and say the trade offs, because there always is.

Yes, there were the right ones.

Yes. Yeah, no, you're right. And Kelly, you all deciding and talking about that so you can put the priorities and your husband may have a different level of priorities. But what I want you all to do is to have the time to communicate and then hear, listen with your heart. It's so easy to listen with your ears and your head. But when you listen with the heart, what you're doing is you're really hearing and feeling and understanding the person.

And if your husband can feel that you're doing that for him and he's doing that for you, you all will look through the lens for these kids and say, hey, what's the what's the root? What do we do? And like I agree with you, it's always give and take. We want to take take, but we've got to do the gift.

Well, I think, too, I mean, you know, I gave an example. I had a young lady the other day that was telling us that she had always wanted to be a nurse. And so Coleman can. Coleman in her show suggested she go and shadow nursing for a couple of days. And she went to the hospital and worked beside a nurse and went, oh, I wanna do this. Oh, but nursing is a good career, right?

And it's good money and you can get always get work. And that was what was appealing. But then the actual doing of the job. So you like it. Do you want to do in. Nearing 40 hours a week, 10 years from today with your B.S., is that what you want to do? Nothing wrong with that, but I need to be sure that's that's a lot of a lot of stuff given up to get there. Sure. You better be sure that's the latter.

Green leaning on the wrong building. Oh, this is the Dave Ramsey Show. Hour by hour, Scripture of the day is Proverbs four, twenty three, keep your heart with all vigilance, far from it, flow the springs of life. Michael Olcha says the bad news is time flies. The good news is you're the pilot. Oh, that's pretty good. With us in Brunswick, Georgia. Hi, Colby. Welcome to The Dave Ramsey Show.

Hi. Thanks for having me. Sure. What's up? So I'm 18 years old. I'm a freshman in college, and I'm trying to figure out what I should do with the majority of my income. I make about twenty thousand dollars between my part time job and save ourselves. So I'm trying to figure out if I should continue investing it the way I am or should I just leave it in a savings account for when I graduate college. And if I need the money, it's there.

What are you investing in in this in the stock market to at about eight thousand dollars in mutual funds and individual stocks. And then last year I put 5000 in a Roth IRA. Good for you. Well done.

Well done. Well, Colby, the best rate of return on your money is Colby. What are you studying? Aviation science and flight management. OK, so you're going to make more money as a result of having spent money on education than you will make in mutual funds, given that you are studying something that is actually usable, you're not getting a degree in medieval lefthanded poetry, OK?

Right.

So very wise on your part.

So the point is, is that the main use of money for you, the number one job, one for money for you, is graduate and graduate on time and graduate debt free.

So I don't care if you save for retirement, I do care if you grow until you graduate. Yeah, I do care that you graduate and graduate on time and you pay cash and you don't go in debt.

Now you're a working dude and you're a saving dude and you're way ahead of the curve. I'm so impressed with you.

Yeah. Kobe, you really and truly are, buddy. Who taught you about this? Did your parents teach you? Are you self-taught? Yeah, my parents always taught me the importance of being alive in their finances and especially my grandfather. I'm fortunate enough to have my college paid for. So I'm not having to take out any student loans or any debt. So I'll graduate college debt free.

So that's fantastic. So I would ask you to take it a step further. I want you to find someone that is doing a pilot or someone private or or someone that does commercial, but really find out what's the next level for flight school. What's it going to cost? What are the areas you're thinking of so that you can start to see toward it as well? You are way ahead of the game, young man, and I'm sure funds are fine.

Single stocks are not good growth stock, mutual funds or just a savings account. Knowing that you just don't need to be fancy. Just pile up cash. A big ol pile of cash when you graduate means you're a genius. Yep.

Yep. OK, and then you can make all kinds of choices for long term investments, buying a home, moving to a new city, do all kinds of stuff when cash gives you options.

Yeah. You know what, Dave? I keep getting on my show, the Chris Hogan Show. I'm getting people calling in that are 22 and 23 and they're they're paying cash for homes there. They've got hundred thousand save for retirement. I'm like, who taught you? I've had five of them. Tell me.

They went through foundations. They plugged into our high school curriculum, took it as a freshman, listened to it, got out and started doing it. Wow. So it is one of those things where, you know, and that department, it is making a difference.

Maria is in Tampa. Hi, Maria. Welcome to The Dave Ramsey Show.

Hi. Thank you for taking my call. I appreciate everything you guys have done. Thank you. My question is, can we afford to build a five hundred eighty nine thousand dollar home? What will your payments be like? It should be if we put 20 percent down, it'll be thirty three, nineteen, OK.

And that is that a 15 year fixed. I know that after 30 years, OK, Netiv calculated on a 15 year and it shouldn't be more than one fourth of your take home pay, and so you make making sixteen thousand dollars a month take home.

You know, we're making thirteen thousand dollars pick up, OK? Yeah.

You're getting ready to sign up for too much. Ouch. Yeah. OK, ok.

I'm sorry about that. No, listen to me, Maria. I'm so proud of you for calling in because the bank or the mortgage company will allow you to do that. They will allow you to sign up for that headache and heartache trip. You have to be aware, you and your husband, enough to say, oh, and you downgrade you. I'm serious because they will allow it. And what you'll think is, well, if they said I can't, it must make sense.

No, it doesn't. It makes sense for them.

You know, a fourth of your take home pay on a 15 year fix. Now take home pay is not after 401k. Take home pay is not after insurance. Take on pay just after taxes.

So what do you get home with for not counting your investments, not counting health insurance coming out or anything else that comes out your check except taxes? All I'm saying, but I can't pay his taxes. So if there's a bunch coming out to get to thirteen and really if you add back in the 401k and you add back in the health insurance and it comes out to be fifteen, then, you know, we're probably getting pretty close here because your payments are going to be on a fifteen year, a fourth of your take home pay and you're going to be fine.

So it's not an absolute but you need to dig into a little bit more. And the goal would be one fourth or so, give or take. But you just if you get if you get up where you got thirty five percent of your take home pay on a 15 years, all you ever want to do because you won't get the house paid off. That's a big part of wealth building. That's right. And if you get up there at thirty five percent, you can't do other stuff that you need to do.

You get handcuffed. And I've spent time in L.A. and in New York and I've seen people that are home poor. That means they bought so much house that they can't really live in other places. So don't necessarily seek to buy the home you want, buy the home that you can afford. But it makes sense for you and your budget.

Sean is in Houston, Texas. Hi, Sean. How are you?

Hello. I'm doing pretty good. I'm calling because we're being sued by American Express. We were searched this weekend. The papers we owe, we owe them eighty five thousand dollars. We have fifty thousand dollars. And I'm trying to find out, do I need to hire an attorney or should I try to settle with them for the 50000 or. I have talked to an attorney. They told me it would be if the one hundred dollars to hire them.

And I'm just trying to find out which way to go, OK?

Oh, that sounds a little steep to settle that. And how far behind are you.

We we well can we. We last paid them in July right after you know, the whole thing around the world. Eighty five thousand dollars on an Amex card.

It's a it was a business card and my husband decided to do a business deal and sign it all the material for a project. And that's disk. Yep. So here we go.

Oh, this is why we don't do it. OK, I just wanted to learn I wanted to learn the lesson with you there. Ouch. I'm sorry. I'm sorry you're facing this. Yeah. That's a big enough deal. I'm not going to have you settle that on your own. I would get legal representation. I don't think you found the right legal representation yet. And no, you're not bankrupt. You have enough money to settle this. Amex will do this.

But they are they're skunk's. They are not good people. And we deal with them all the time. And you can tell they're lying if their mouths are moving. So you really do need to get legal representation. I think you can settle it for fifty or less with them. If you haven't paid them since July. Try this.

Not a collection bully dotcom collection, dotcom.

That's a group of attorneys that we recommend for people that are being bullied by collectors. OK, and I think one of them will probably pick up your case and represent you for less than that. I might be wrong. It might be that much, but OK, OK, but if you can settle eighty five for fifteen, it calls you five grand.

That's still a deal. Right. Let's stay in Libya.

Yeah it is. And I'm proud of you for being proactive because a lot of people would freeze and the moment and I'm glad you're being proactive and acknowledging this for what it is. It is something that needs to be dealt with.

Absolutely no open phones at triple eight eight two five five two two five.

And you're not bankrupt.

OK, so I'm picking on her or her husband, but. Thirty eight percent of small businesses use credit cards to finance their business ideas, and this is where you end up on the verge of bankruptcy.

Mm hmm. Stop that crap. Yeah. How organically grow your business with the cash that the business creates. And if you can't if you don't have the money or can't get enough deposit to cover the project, don't ask. Don't do it. Puts us of the Dave Ramsey Show on the books. We'll be back with you before you know it. In the meantime, remember, there's ultimately only one way to financial piece, and that's football daily with the Prince of Peace Prize.

Jesus. This is James Childs, producer of The Dave Ramsey Show, you can listen to Dave, Rachel Kroos, Chris Hogan or the rest of the Ramsey network anywhere with the Ramsey network app on your smartphone, get catch all of our full shows, browse by topic or send clips to your friends at to the App Store and download the Ramsey network app today.

Money isn't the only thing we talk about around here. Get life changing advice on your career from my good friend and career expert Ken Coleman. Oh, my Ken Coleman show. According to a recent Gallup poll, nearly 70 percent of Americans are disengaged at work. If you dread going into work every Monday morning and you're just trying to make it to the weekend, the Ken Coleman show is for you. Everyone has a sweet spot. Your sweet spot is at the intersection of your greatest talent and greatest passion.

We will help you discover what it is you were born to do, and then we'll help you create a plan to make your dream job a reality. You matter and you have what it takes. Join the conversation on the Ken Coleman show here. More from the Ramsey network, including the Ken Coleman Show, wherever you listen to podcast.

Hey, it's James, producer of The Dave Ramsey Show. This episode is over, but check the episode notes for links to products and services you've heard about during this episode. Thanks for listening.