I'm 60. House paid off. Piece of land paid off. 30k in emergency fund. 250k stashed. No debt and 6 figure pension. I'm still on a budget

Don’t you just love when callers say I have 87,000 in student loans and 20,000 in a car otherwise I HAVE NO DEBT 🤯🤯🤯 and what was that then?? 😆

Just punched my student loans in the face and they are dead! THANK GOD!

"I don't care what you want. You're broke." Gotta love Dave!!

This guy is not gonna follow the advice. He is gonna do what he wants. 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

My husband and I attacked his 70k debts w in 9 months, while he was making 47k annually. I worked 2 dif part time jobs plus selling on 3 dif platforms. We both worked 7 days per week. We also saved up 1 yr of Er funds + 401k contributions while attacking debts. It was rough and sometimes we wanted to give up, but having Dave screaming into our ears 24/7 thru his channel, we gotta do it. We rented and lived in a converted garage for 2 yrs. Ppl were laughing at us. We knew our future will be worth it. Now, my husband makes over $200k annually w no debts, except mortgage. Those who were laughing at us now either move out of states due to house market here in cali or still renting their houses, while we bought our own house and very happy w it. We are on step 6. I cant wait to pay off our house. It feels good to be able to control your own money and finance.

I had to pay tens of thousands over the years to get my U.S. citizenship, that put me behind. Almost died, shot in the stomach by a criminal. That put me WAYY behind, with extra surgeries. I was fraudulently handed 10-99's instead of W4's for taxes, that set me behind. My face got broken and needed surgery at a religious chicken restaurant event, they swept it under the rug. That set me back and lost that job. I always worked really hard and did my best, Somehow, I have managed to keep ZERO debt, own a car, and yes, unfortunately still rent. But I am working on a plan to change all this. Wish me luck!!

He needs to pretend he still makes his old income and throw half his salary right onto the loans every month.

I finally got funded yesterday!!! It took almost 2 weeks to go through this process! I just want to say it was because of you that I continued the process! I wanted to give up but I didn't you helped me navigate through all the red tape! Praise God and thank you MYSTICFLIP

Dave is right. My whole attitude changed when I paid off my student loans. My wife and I cleared $96k in 2 years and now we travel more with no worries about whose president

Not going to lie, but we are actually really proud to have an employee like you as part of the team. The job is done so gracefully and neatly. Very well done, dear MYSTICFLIP . First of all. Thank you for making the work environment so friendly and taking your responsibility seriously and completing the work gracefully! You deserve so much.

I was renting the whole time I was paying off debt. It was a 2b2b apartment with 975 sq ft. That was SECURITY while I was attacking the debt. Renting = no house repairs.

I still believe $1000 is not NEARLY ENOUGH for an emergency fund. That’s literally not even one month of my rent.

He wanted Dave to tell him that it is okay for him go buy a house now 😂😂😂

You know this guy is just going to continue doing what he was doing.

My wife and I run FPU classes and we just LOVE it when people with six figures of debt tell us why they're doing great, they have a plan, they have ideas, and they effectively want us to "approve" their plan and acknowledge that the baby steps are wrong. Always entertaining.

0:51 Caller:. I have $87,000 of student loan debt and owe $27,000 on my car. Otherwise I have no debt. Isn't that enough? $114,000!

Had a blessed year. Paid off my house. $215k household income. $350k in savings. Debt free. 36 years old.

Wish I would of found DR when I was 28! I was living on the hog on the outside and broke inside. What Jade said about skinny fat was me. Im finally on track and got a lot to catch up on financially. Being debt free feels like I can do anything now. Everyday I wake up knowing I owe No-one it’s such a great feeling.

I think a guy who was just recently laid off has reason to feel as if he NEEDS an emergency fund just in case he gets laid off again. He can “follow” Dave’s plan & still keep a 2 or 3 month emergency fund handy while attacking his debt. The reason he called in though was to ask about how to buy a house but after Dave heard the amount of debt the guy had he never got a chance to ask his house question. 😂

He won’t do any of this. He’s gonna go buy a house

Well, I’m tired of renting…. “YOU’RE BROKE!”

I can tell from his “um hums” that he doesn’t really want to get serious about attacking his debt

This dude is complaining about renting when he still has over 100k in debt. lol

The instant he gets his higher paying job he forgets all the stress and anxiety he was just facing and immediately tries to lifestyle up, lol. He didn't sound at all like he was onboard with the debt elimination plan, he was sounding like he wants to borrow as much as possible for a mortgage and go full fledged ish for the next 25 years.

I agree with Jonathan actually… his extra savings helped him survive the layoff. $1000 in 2023 is like…nothing. You can’t even pay 1 month rent with that. You can’t buy tires. You can’t pay for a transmission. You can’t pay your deductible on a car accident or if your in the ER. It literally cover nothing of an actual emergency. Why even have it if that low?

MYSTICFLIP! I am so glad I discovered you on KZfaq. You are a brilliant person and I just got funded for my business. Saying thanks & for sharing your knowledge doesn't come close to express how much I appreciate you.

We are moving out of state for my wife's work. We both make 6 figures. We chose to rent rather than buy into the looney toons housing market we are moving to. Houses are more than double the cost they were 2 years ago. A run down shack in the woods goes for over 300k right now. I'm an Engineer and used to work construction. I budgeted stuff out. I can buy land, prep it, and build a house for 1/3rd of what they are selling for. Instead of buying a crappy $300k house I'll build a really nice $250k house that will be worth over $500k. We might be able to cash flow most of it vs getting a high interest Mortgage on a house we don't want.

I do agree that the psychology of freeing one's self from debt and the discipline it takes to focus on it for 2 years is valuable. But I do have self-control and focus so I will never agree with Dave that it's okay to run for 2 years with only $1000 emergency fund. I would split payments between the debt and saving. Maybe it will take 3 yrs instead of just 2 to get out of debt but at least I've got living expenses if I get laid off or injured or otherwise unemployed again.

Thank you so much MYSTICFLIP for my SBA approval. I understand the terms and conditions of the loan disbursal and will make sure that I return the loan amount in the stipulated timeline. As I have already taken insurance for my new Business that I am planning to open in California LA. My business details and owner details have been submitted in the bank and I will be submitting the further details as well as and when the times comes.

"i had my rainy day fund because I didn't attack the debt". This guy is screwed. He wants to rationalize not paying off his debt for any reason

Why do people like this bother calling the show just to argue and not listen?

first of all.Thank you for making the work environment so friendly and taking your responsibility seriously and completing the work gracefully!You deserve so much.He does what he says he is going to do and his ethics are of the highest quality.MYSTICFLIP

I really struggle with how Dave disregards taxes…..😮‍💨

Why i laugh at some of these caller and their situation is almost an exact replica of my life? I'm tired of renting too 😭

A 1k emergency fund is so freaking risky, especially in a poor job market.

I'm also a renter. I haven't been broke a day in my life since turning 18, and according to the statistics, I am WAY ahead of the national average in terms of savings for my age group. I could have bought a house years ago, but I don't want to. I rent because I want to rent. Dave doesn't seem to understand this because he is apparently too beholden to the real estate/finance cartels.

It’s nice that Dave spent a bit more time trying to convince him to follow the plan, lately he just hangs up and says well if you don’t want to do it then don’t

There can be legitimate reasons to be a Renter… you don’t always stay in one country, let alone place forever… sometimes when you take on new challenges e.g. new graduate programme, new job in a different country. You can find yourself Renting! In which case I choose to put my lump sums into solid investments rather than a massive physical asset with entry and exit costs. Of course property is a great asset. But it’s not always the right choice for everyone situation.

Yeah after being laid off I'm not dropping my savings to 1k dollars. I'm a Ramsey fan but that's stupid. If he gets laid off or something else happens he's homeless

DO NOT empty you account to 1k. DO NOT stop retirement. All it takes is a broken leg. Your 1k will not do anything.

puting 7k out of your 8k emergency saved is such horrible advice in todays time. And I get Dave wanting him to pay off his debt but I will never agree with not enjoying your life to some extent. Tommorows not promised. You will die miserable. There has to be a balance

He not going to follow the plan. 0% chance.

About 12 years ago, were approved for a loan by a direct lender and almost bought a condo where we lived in So Cal. We had some credit card debt and didn't have much of a down payment, and then we discovered Ramsey and decided to wait and signed another 14 month lease. The condo we were originally looking at shot up within that year almost 100k! Just kept getting worse and we couldn't catch up. Most of our debt was gone, but needed the emergency fund and bigger down payment. Another year, another 100K up. After a few more years of this game, we gave up. The original condo we almost pulled the trigger on would have been a 1200 dollar payment including tax and and a not too bad homeowners association. The rent kept going up on our 1 bedroom apartment and in the end we were paying 1900 dollars. When it jumped up to 2100 for the next lease, we decided to bail. Hubby asked to go remote and his boss was well aware of how expensive Ca. was getting and didn't want to lose him as an employee so we moved (this was before the pandemic) We went to a place where the rent was almost half the cost and no income tax. My husband has the professional job and I'm a waitress, and can work anywhere. Anyway, we finally got out from behind the 8 ball, have a 6 month EF, and will have a huge down payment for a place as long as we stay out of So. California. The downside is we miss all our friends and family who are still there. I'm not great at making new friends, and the pandemic didn't help matters to try and socialize. Sometimes I really regret not buying that condo when we had the chance. We would have been locked into that payment and my husbands raises would have counted for something instead of a lot of it going to rent raises, plus we would have still had our community. In the end though, I'm glad I found Ramsey. The steps really do work, just found them at a stupid time in life after making our foolish mistakes. Ramsey should be taught as young as possible!!!! 🙂

I love how Dave always uses gross figures and conveniently ignores taxes, health insurance, etc that is taken out before you even see your pay check

Hearing these stories let know my situation is a single rain 💧.

I'm a renter and definitely not broke. My best buddy is a millionaire and a renter as well. So much for your theory, Dave.

I have a vague sense from him, trying to ask if he should get a house to avoid paying rent. Dave already shuts him down. Lol

With all the homeless out here u shud be glad y can afford to rent a place. Some people have nothing.

Whyd this guy even bother calling in? Agree or disagree with Dave he knew exactly what Dave was gonna say. Then he has the nerve to start having an attitude when Dave said the things he already knew Dave was gonna say. Some people are weird.

I have a hard time with liquidating his emergency fund to pay off, what, 1/3 of the car loan? If he could pay the whole thing off, maybe. I'd rather see him go "scorched earth" for 1-2 years and pay all the debt off, without pausing retirement and without draining his savings.

I love that Dave called renters “broke” while living off their rent payments.

Keep the 8k in case of emergency and pay off the car.

Dave kinda said it at around 5:00 about the callers concern of not having an emergency fund. The small emergency fund is there for a small buffer and to MAKE you uncomfortable to keep paying this debt off quicker so you can move on to step 3. Let’s be real here, this caller is a single man, doesn’t sound like he has kids, and is in his 30s. I’d be hard pressed to see him have an emergency that’ll cost more than $1000 within a 2 year span. 🤷🏽‍♂️

I disagree with Dave on telling him he shouldn’t have that 3 month cushion. It’s a need he just got laid off.

I love this! Most people will never take the first step to get a better job and look the caller DOUBLED his salary! Find the courage take the step and improve your life. No one is going to do it for you! Amazing to hear the stories!

He is not going to do it. He has been knowing what to do this whole time and didn’t do it.

Why in the world is he even thinking about buying a house, right now?????

He’s not gonna get out of debt. He want to spend money.

Always have 3 months. 1k is not enough. Pay off the debt definitely but shit happens

If we take his gross pay into account, he has a debt to income ratio of $114,000/$130,000 = 87.6%. If we take his assumed net pay of $91,000, then his DTI is $114,000/$91,000 = 125% He didn't work for months either. That puts a gap in his two year income. Why does he think about buying a house? No lender will give him a penny. And all this $130,000 pay talk is for a job he hasn't started yet.

Why the hell would anyone want to buy a home right now. Debt or no debt.

It's already been said many times (even by Dave) that $1,000 saved is not nearly enough in 2023. I think it's time to update that number.

I love Dave! He done told Johnathon how it is. I hope he listens. This plan works.

Not sure why people call but don't want to listen.

Kill that debt! Once he feels the pain of paying on it he'll realize he truly is in debt

Some of these people think that when they drink a glass of water dry, that it’s going to fill itself up again!

Following Dave's advice is an excellent way to stay a renter forever.

If you make $130,000 a year living in the region of North Carolina, USA, you will be taxed $37,841. That means that your net pay will be $92,160 per year, or $7,680 per month. Please tell me how you are going to pay off $70K per year!!! And live off of $22,160? Good lord.

George made a good point. Only thing that helped him was the fact the loans have been in pause.

In all honesty...his advice is good. But had i listened to Dave exactly as the baby steps...buying a house now would be more difficult with the interest rates and prices. I purchased a home while going to grad school. Paid off all my consumer debt last month and am now on baby step 3. But buying a house now vs 5 years ago would be impossible. We also purchased a home that was affordable...which was a huuuge factor in actually being able to pay off the consumer debt.

Monthly mortgage payments for buyers of new homes has DOUBLED in the last 4 years. Interest rates have DOUBLED as well over that same time frame. Buying a house ain’t the walk in the park that it used to be, Dave. You’re out of touch.

They have the wrong title to this video. It should accurately say "That's why yera renter"

Zero rush in his situation, just pay the car as planned and just pay off the student loan in 4 year, no eating out and no partying my ass, 130k is more than enough to enjoy his life reasonably

Hes got that 6 figure salary now, sounds like hes gonna be living that lifestyle now. I hope im wrong though 😂

The most precious commodity is time. Don't waste it chasing the dollar.

where are all these jobs paying $130k? all these callers make it sound like it's a typical salary or something.

Buddy, you have $100k in debt. You ain’t buying a house.

"Two words that don't go together, like 'airline service.'" Genuinely laughed out loud at that!

Tossing the 7k at the debt is kind of silly. Just attack the debt, leave the 7k alone until your in payoff range.

He isn’t going to be able to buy a house with debt almost as much as his income

I just have to say what a novel idea this is. Thsnks Dave i don't know why no one tried to not be broke!

A new set of tires costs $2500, I just don’t see the $1000 being enough.

Telling him to not add to his 401k while paying off car and student loans is the dumbest advice ever and is not smart financially long term. At least contribute what is required to get the company match as that is a 100% instant return on your investment.

Emergency fund should go before debt.

Everyone needs to stop buying in this manipulated market until prices are forced to come back to normal year to year appreciation. This 40-50% jump in “market value” over a single year is destroying 10-15 years of sound and disciplined financial behavior. Even if you have cash, why would a wise person pay $550K for a house that was $350K 2 years ago. … and a loan at 7%?

I hate debt but I don't think not having an emergency fund for just 3 months is a good idea. I would rather keep the 8k and pay minimum payments for about 3 months until I boost my savings to about 12 ti 14k then go rice and beans and put everything toward debt. Why???? Because life happen and so many hard working people can get laid off again because of corporate greed. He could crash his car or something happen to the engine and then he will need to go to more debt to get an other car. If he keeps the 8k and add about 4k he should feel mentally stronger and then leave on 50k to 75k depend on city and state and put about 40k to 60k toward debt because he will also have to pay at least 18 to 20k in taxes.

I'm single for lifer, and at this point, I don't think buying a house will ever be better than renting. $700 for rent and an 800 sf house in the area is $200-$250k. Even with aggressive inflation assumptions, itd still take 20 years to break even.

Can’t blame someone for being nervous about a $1k emergency fund after experiencing a layoff. Would’ve been helpful to point out that the caller should be just as nervous about adding a mortgage to the existing debt - too high of a DTI ratio.

When I pay over on my loans they just apply the overpayment to the next month invoice. That is a problem!

I wish Dave would let the caller talk Dave must love talking to himself

I just found your content this week. I should be able to start baby step two next month. I also started my business launching this month with no debt to start.

So… with 130k salary his take home is 91k Dave wants him to put 70k a year towards debt…. So this guy is supposed to live off 22% of his take home pay…. Seriously? That’s the plan. His rent is probably more than 20k in a year

Do it trust me blindly just because of you called me i would walk away, those words sound like a scam artist

He can build an emergency and pay down his debt. Why have to do one or the other

Follow the baby steps to the letter. Full stop.

I disagree with not having more than $1,000 emergency fund... Imagine being laid off with only a grand? How does rent get paid? $1,000 baby step seems to be applicable to someone in 1990, not 2023.

So, if this guy had been following Ramsey when he got laid off, he would be homeless right now. Sure attack the debt, but don't put yourself in financial peril by wiping out your savings margin. This guy found our first hand that an employer can walk into your office and tell you "Sorry, but we are going in another direction..." or some other BS. The only thing that saved him was not the student loan pause, but the fact he had reserves. This caller is not in dire straits and he is not "broke". If the new employer offers company match on the 401k, take it, don't give up 100% return on your savings.

Sorry if I'm missing something but I can't possibly agree with not having an emergency fund before paying off debt. So, if you're laid off again you immediately go bankrupt? Nah, absolutely not. 1. Minimise "essential expenses" as much as possible. 2. Build a reasonable emergency fund. 3. Balance between paying off debt and investing a little bit, particularly in tax-beneficial accounts like pension and RothIRA. Both have benefits. Paying off debt massively reduces your risk if you're laid off and such and also feels extremely good psychologically. But investing probably has a higher return (think: higher interest rate). If you have the discipline and you know what you're doing it's optimal to do a bit of both. Otherwise, pay off debt first as, even though it's not optimal, it's a very good move regardless, and it's the fool-proof way.

You can tell by his tone saying mmm hmmm he fully expected his student loans to be forgiven 😒