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Thoughts on Dave Ramsey

February 24th, 2013 at 05:24 pm

I finally lost a post. After reading about others who've had the same fate, it finally happened to me. Arghh!

I started listening to Dave Ramsey's podcast. I never followed his plan, but just happen to be somewhere between steps 4-6 (saving for retirement, saving for college, paying down Heloc). I had a question for anyone out there who follows him, and and two "a-ha" moments.

Question: Why does he list saving for college as step 5 and paying off mortgage as step 6? I would think paying off the house would be the same as saving for retirement: your kids can find different ways to get through school, but you're getting older and need to be debt free. I'm saving for both at the same time, I was just curious as to what his rationale is.

A-ha #1: When looking at Dave's suggested budget template, he gives ranges for how much of your net pay you should be spending for each category. I'm in line or below on all the categories except 1: Personal. He recommends 5-10% of net income and I'm at a whopping 17%! Unfortunately, this is where all of the "fun" stuff is: allowance, pet, kids' extracurricular activities, wine (our big hobby), haircuts and mani-pedis, etc. I'm going to focus some attention on how to get this more in-line, without depriving myself, if possible. This is where it's tough to be frugal!

A-ha #2: Dave looks at net income. I also looked at gross income so I could factor how much I pay in taxes into the mix. Here are my top 4 spending categories:
1) Taxes - 27% of gross income
2) Housing - 23%
3) Personal - 13%
4) Savings - 9%

Nothing else is more than 7.25%

I mentioned Personal above, and I'd like to increase savings. The a-ha is a bit of frustration that there is not much I can do about the 2 biggest categories. I just adjusted my withholding, so taxes are what they are. Housing consists of my mortgage, heloc, property taxes (a whopping $13k+) and $300/month for maintenance and other household stuff.

So that leaves me with the little categories to attack, where I don't think there's a lot of bang for my buck.

All in all, I've enjoyed learning more about Dave's approach. How about you? Are you a Dave fan? What do you love/hate about his methods?

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments »

5 Responses to “Thoughts on Dave Ramsey”

  1. MonkeyMama Says:
    February 24th, 2013 at 07:25 pm 1361733913
    1361733913

    I like Dave. I listen to the archives online and just zip through the commercials, and the yadda yadda. So, I admit I don't think I would enjoy listening to his whole show. You listen to him a while and he is a very reasonable person (& like I said, that is skipping all the sermons and political stuff). I think people sometimes listen a short while and make a lot of assumptions. Which is fair enough, but I don't find any truth to a lot of the first impressions. He's a pretty open minded guy, and you have to remember he is talking to a certain audience, as well as going for entertainment value. I think 90% of what he says is how I was raised financially, and the other 10% I completely do not agree with and just ignore. As it is with any financial guru. There is good stuff, and bad/useless stuff.

    You'd be surprised how the little things add up. Wink
    As for the question, I think some people tend to "over" pay down their house and then borrow against it again for college. I think the point is just to do a little everything - not put all your eggs in one basket. & to not end up where you have to borrow again later. Of course, I think most his listeners will be mortgage free LONG before they ever retire, which may be more to the point.

  2. creditcardfree Says:
    February 24th, 2013 at 07:31 pm 1361734290
    1361734290

    I like Dave. I think he has a good plan for helping most people get started on a financial plan. Dave would actually suggest you pay cash in full for your home, or take out the smallest mortgage possible. He is against borrowing for anything except a home, if memory serves. Therefore, college education savings in cash is a priority.

    Yes, the little extras add up and those are were the excess savings are available. The less you spend on extras the more you have to pay down debt, save for college or pay off your house.

  3. Jerry Says:
    February 24th, 2013 at 11:19 pm 1361747942
    1361747942

    I like Dave Ramsey, although I haven't read or listened to a ton of his stuff. The reason I like him is because his plan was able to lead my parents out of debt and change their financial reality considerably as they head into retirement. Just the fact that they now have some insurance of a better future makes me appreciate the guy.
    Jerry

  4. Baby_nurse Says:
    February 25th, 2013 at 01:22 am 1361755354
    1361755354

    I know a lot of people take issue with Dave Ramsey, especially when it comes to his debt snowball. But I like listening to him. I like hearing the way he encourages his listeners to live debt free. I like the fact that he breaks things down in to small, do-able steps. I'm not sure if some of his percentages will work in high-expense areas of the country. But his basic method of save more, spend less will work no matter where you are.

    ~Donna

  5. CB in the City Says:
    February 25th, 2013 at 03:36 pm 1361806580
    1361806580

    In regard to your "personal" category -- I think a lot depends on what you consider part of the category. What I consider my personal spending is simply haircuts, manicures & pedicures, and personal supplies like feminine hygiene products. I have other categories for pets, hobbies, etc. So, yeah, my personal spending is well under 10%!

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