Living debt free
Pay off your debt and it may help you get rid of much of the stress in your life. News on 6 anchor Craig Day talked with a financial expert and nationwide radio host for this special report on beatingThursday, May 6th 2004, 12:57 pm
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News On 6
Pay off your debt and it may help you get rid of much of the stress in your life. News on 6 anchor Craig Day talked with a financial expert and nationwide radio host for this special report on beating debt.
Money matters cause most of the stress in our lives. But imagine being debt free? It isn't easy, but talk-radio host Dave Ramsey says it really can happen. Like most Americans, Jeff and Jackie Howard lived paycheck to paycheck. They paid bills on time, but rarely was anything left over. Jeff Howard: "It seemed like we were never making progress. We were like on a treadmill and I always had a feeling we should be doing more than we were doing. We should be saving more than we were saving. We should be investing more than we were investing."
Last September, they started a plan. By this September, they'll have paid off $17,000 in debt. Jeffrey Bollinger's family also wanted a change. “We had just had our second child. Both of our incomes had been reduced, and we decided it was time to do something fairly radical.†Radical meant paying off $8,000 in debt and creating a six-month emergency fund. Many folks are getting rid of thousands and thousands of dollars in debt.
They're doing it by following the principles of a radio host based in Nashville, Tennessee. “Welcome to the new millennium. Where debt is dumb. Cash is king and the paid off home mortgage has taken the place of the BMW as the status symbol of choice. I'm Dave Ramsey you host and this is the best in talk radio." Each day, radio host Dave Ramsey serves up straight talk on fighting debt. "We're going to give you the same financial advice your grandmother did, but we keep our teeth in."
The heart of that advice is to stop borrowing and live on less than you make. “How would you describe the status of Americans right now? Most Americans are looking good and broke. We got a thing on our pocket. A satellite dish on the house. A bass boat sitting in the driveway. Two fleeced cars sitting there. And no clue how we're going to retire. No clue how our kids are going to go to college and no clue how to pay the payments on all that crap if we lose our job next week. You don't want to keep up with the Joneses. They're on the way to bankruptcy court."
Bankruptcy is where Ramsey found himself 16 years ago. Having made and lost millions, he began a crusade against credit.†It used to be called common sense. It used to be called biblical finance. Living on less than you make. Cutting up your credit cards. Being on a budget. Having an emergency fund. Actually investing so you have a retirement with dignity is so weird now. That it is marketable." Very marketable. Ramsey has written books, and holds many live events each year.
150,000 people will study his financial peace university curriculum this year, just like the Howards. It includes planning ahead and budgeting. Jackie Howard: "I have a food envelope, a gas envelope. Entertainment in case we want to go to the movies or out to eat. And then the all important Blow category. Because sometimes things come up that you don't expect."
Ramsey says after a budget, create a $1,000 emergency fund. Then start paying off debts smallest to largest. "Attack that little one with a vengeance. Sell so much stuff that the kids think they're next. Get after it." Once all bills except the house are paid off, finish your emergency fund to cover 3 to 6 months of expenses.
"It's hard. But it's do-able. And it is easier than being broke and mediocre your whole life. It's hard to sacrifice, but anyone can live like no one else. So later they can live like no one else. Once you have an emergency fund, then you invest 15% of your income for retirement. Then create a college fund for the kids. The next step is to pay extra each month on your mortgage. Once your house is paid off, you'll be able to give to others, like you've never been able to give before."
The heart of what Dave Ramsey teaches is not about eating nothing but bread and water. It's about changing behavior.
For more information about Dave Ramsey, you can check out his web site at { "@context" : "http://schema.org", "@type": "NewsArticle", "url": "https://www.newson6.com/story/5e367e1b2f69d76f62091757/living-debt-free", "headline": "Living debt free", "author" : [ {"@type": "Person", "name": "News On 6"} ], "datePublished": "2004-05-06T17:57:00.000Z", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://www.newson6.com/favicon.ico" } }, "dateModified": "2020-03-31T17:24:22.289Z" , "mainEntityOfPage": { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://www.newson6.com/story/5e367e1b2f69d76f62091757/living-debt-free" } }
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