Dave Ramsey Support Thread Oct 1 - Oct 7

[EmmaGM]

Does dr ever say anything about throwing money away on rent? Because that's what I feel like I'm doing.

Maybe its not so bad in other places but here, I could buy a 3/2 home for the same as I'd pay in rent for a 2/1 apartment.

The point is moot atm because it will be several years before we're ready to buy, I'm just curious as I've never read or heard DR say anything about the nature of renting.

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[krispy79]

Originally Posted by EmmaGM Does dr ever say anything about throwing money away on rent? Because that's what I feel like I'm doing. Maybe its not so bad in other places but here, I could buy a 3/2 home for the same as I'd pay in rent for a 2/1 apartment. The point is moot atm because it will be several years before we're ready to buy, I'm just curious as I've never read or heard DR say anything about the nature of renting. Sent from my Galaxy S III using DS Forum

Yes but then you also have to pay for upgrades, repairs, gas to mow the lawn, taxes, etc., and isn't paying interest on a huge loan throwing away money"
Owning your home is wonderful thing, the American Dream, but sometimes it's best our dreams sit on the back burner until we can really enjoy them. Hang in there :-)

[lensesforeyes]

I did a debt snowball calculator today, and found out that if we pay off our debt by interest rate first verses smallest debt first, we will pay off debts in the exact same months, but save about $40 in interest. Needless to say, we are doing this. I also looked at the budget, and we should be able to make our first big debt payment this month. Baring anything big coming up, we will be out of debt no later than next July, and that's without using any of our tax return. So, more likely June.

[mommy2kaitlyn]

Originally Posted by lensesforeyes I did a debt snowball calculator today, and found out that if we pay off our debt by interest rate first verses smallest debt first, we will pay off debts in the exact same months, but save about $40 in interest. Needless to say, we are doing this. I also looked at the budget, and we should be able to make our first big debt payment this month. Baring anything big coming up, we will be out of debt no later than next July, and that's without using any of our tax return. So, more likely June.

Did you figure in the extra money going towards higher interest of you go lowest first? I did that and saved money, the highest first.

Alisha I know how to spell my Samsung Galaxy S2 does not.

[KelseyH]

Originally Posted by EmmaGM Keep on trucking mama. When I lived in Michigan I would heat up my rick sock (tube of fleece sewn together with rice in it, throw it in the microwave) and rest my feet on it with a blanket over to keep the sock hot longer. So much cheaper than turning the heat on! Right now I'm struggling with keeping the AC off! It's OCTOBER! This is my first fall living in Texas so... my mind is blown. I turned the AC off and opened all the windows yesterday but it got sooo hot. I eventually turned it back on at night for us to sleep. But hopefully doing this during the day will keep our electric bill lower. It got sooo high last month.

Do you have tinted windows? Our inlaws live in central Texas, and all western-facing windows/glass doors are one way mirror tint and all other windows/doors just have a slight tint on them. They said it really made a difference.

[EmmaGM]

Originally Posted by KelseyH Do you have tinted windows? Our inlaws live in central Texas, and all western-facing windows/glass doors are one way mirror tint and all other windows/doors just have a slight tint on them. They said it really made a difference.

I bet it does. Most homes I see have them but our apartment doesn't.

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[EmmaGM]

Originally Posted by krispy79 Yes but then you also have to pay for upgrades, repairs, gas to mow the lawn, taxes, etc., and isn't paying interest on a huge loan throwing away money" Owning your home is wonderful thing, the American Dream, but sometimes it's best our dreams sit on the back burner until we can really enjoy them. Hang in there :-)

While that's true, I will never be in a position to pay 100% cash for a home so I'll throw money away on interest no matter what. At least part of that will be an investment. I could be wrong but I don't think all the other expenses of owning a home should add up to what I throw away on rent.

As I said, doesn't really apply to me anyway. I was just curious as to DR's stance on renting versus mortgage debt.

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[nhochs]

I hope you don't mind if I join. We are 4 weeks in to FPU at our church and it has given me so much motivation. I have been following DR on the radio for the last 3 years or so but it's nice to actually get gazelle.

DH and I have some decisions to make after FPU and I'm so on the fence. The last 3 years I have been a SAHM to my 4 girls (16,12,3 and 2). My 3rd dd has a medical condition that needs weekly appointments and she attends a special needs preschool. We have a lot of debt. I mean a lot! We were like 25% of the total debt of our class.
Here it is:
Student Loans 84k
Credit Cards 30k
Mortgage 186k
2nd Mortgage 25k
Medical bills 18k

Gross! My dh makes roughly 84k a year and we live on a strict budget but we aren't making much headway with all of our debt. The student loans are mine and I have a MBA. We need to decide if I should return to work. Looking at the numbers it's a no brainer but my dh and I are having such a hard time with it. The main concern is our dd and putting her in daycare. My initial thought is that I wait 2 years until she begins kindergarten then go back full time. But if I wait I feel like I'm hurting my family financially. I've thought about part time but with paying part time daycare costs it's almost a wash. I've been contacted by several companies I could expect to earn around $55k a year.

So help me please...what would you do? Am I being too emotional?

[lensesforeyes]

Originally Posted by mommy2kaitlyn Did you figure in the extra money going towards higher interest of you go lowest first? I did that and saved money, the highest first. Alisha I know how to spell my Samsung Galaxy S2 does not.

It always saves you money to hit the highest rates first, DR says to pay the smallest debt first and go that way. That is so you have the motivation of paying stuff off. What I was saying is either way we do it, we will pay off a debt in the exact same months, so that makes DR point mute in our situation. Won't pay off any debt sooner, but paying in order of interest rates saves us $40. I'm super excited and trying to figure out any little way to add money to our snowball to make it go faster. Kind of wish I wasn't so pregnant so I could get an evenings/weekend seasonal job, lol.

[redsonja]

Originally Posted by emilyrebekah It's been a few years since I did FPU. Does Dave suggest taking care of your current debts before dealing with charged off debt?

Yes, let sleeping dogs lie.

Originally Posted by Marianna1988 I have a feeling DR will be going out the window, for a bit (not forever). We found out we might be moving to Italy in 3 months I plan on purging A TON of things so that there will be less to pack/unpack. We really need to replace things like our couch, our dishes (we have ONE glass dinner plate right now lol), our pots and pans. So I will probably replace those after we move, just donate the old ones before we move. $$$. And we need to visit our parents before we leave (not visiting is out of the question). Obviously, way more $$$, as we need to fly to CA and FL (we might be able to drive to CA, we'll have to look at costs to see which is best, and also how much time DH can get for leave). And going to Europe (specifically Italy) is my lifelong dream, so we'll definitely need a nice vacation savings fund. I can't live in Europe for 2+ years and not travel! I'm pretty sure at least one trip to Germany and 1 to Greece are in order. Minimum. Lol. I still have plans to SB after we move, but it will be less intense, I'm sure, since I will have a vacation envelope to contribute to now Sent from my iPhone using DS Forum

Moving to Europe has been the WORST thing ever for our budget. We aren't making any headway at all. I absolutely LOVE living in Germany, and wouldn't trade it for anything ever, and I travel like crazy, but we decided it's back to the states after this instead of staying here like we originally planned because we just are bleeding money left and right over here. Just be careful when you get here, and give yourselves time to adjust. Also, stop your snowball now and stockpile that money because believe me, you'll need it when you get here!

Originally Posted by EmmaGM Does dr ever say anything about throwing money away on rent? Because that's what I feel like I'm doing. Maybe its not so bad in other places but here, I could buy a 3/2 home for the same as I'd pay in rent for a 2/1 apartment. The point is moot atm because it will be several years before we're ready to buy, I'm just curious as I've never read or heard DR say anything about the nature of renting. Sent from my Galaxy S III using DS Forum

We lived in SA before we moved over here so I know what you're saying about owning versus renting over there. I would personally say (and I am in NO way a financial genius lol) that buying in SA is a very smart move if you plan to stay there long term. Because the housing market there never bubbled, it also never burst, so prices there are very stable. We bought our house there in 2005 for $151,000 and sold it in 2010 for $154,000. We didn't make anything, and lost a bit on improvements, but basically broke even. I would suggest waiting until you have your minor debts paid (not your 100K student loans) and have the ffef in place, but then I'd go ahead and buy because of your location. In the meantime, I would really think about moving out of the apartment and into a rental house. You'll pay about the same but get LOADS more space and privacy. What part of SA are you in?