Could The Obama Administration Take Dave Ramsey Off The Air? Read More: Could The Obama Administration Take Dave Ramsey Off The Air?

[hegemony]

http://580kido.com/could-the-obama-administration-take-dave-ramsey-off-the-air/

 

One can dream...

[cashnocredit]

Only if DR is ruled to be a Fiduciary to his listeners. Not happening. All the crap about the new Fiduciary Rule is generated by the big Wall Street firms that stand to lose big bucks because brokers are not Fiduciaries. They steer clients towards the best investments. Best being defined as increasing the broker's paycheck, not the client's wealth.

Edited March 27, 2016 by cashnocredit

[desalvo7]

Why do you guys hate Dave Ramsey?

[Newguy00]

Why do you guys hate Dave Ramsey?

 

He is anti credit card. And they are pro credit card. Dave Ramsey is for those who lack impulse control or can't control their spending habits. Credit cards will pay you to use them if you do it correctly and don't carry a balance. That being said I think DR has some okay ideas. Setting aside an emergency fund in cash and having a few months worth of expenses socked away should be a given. Also getting people thinking about tackling debt is positive.

 

The abhorrence of all cards is ludicrous. If I buy a fridge with cash and I buy one with a card that gives an extended year warranty and then pay the card in full. Which is the smarter investment?

[hegemony]

Why do you guys hate Dave Ramsey?

Hate is a strong word. Rephrasing your question: Why do people on a pro-credit board who understand there is no one-size fits all model of finance and credit consider a snake oil salesman who regularly berates people for not marching in lock-step with his harmful methods not like Dave Ramsey?

[desalvo7]

Ok fair enough. I was just wondering. I still have a few credit cards with a zero balance but his debt snowball premise has really helped me.

[hegemony]

Ok fair enough. I was just wondering. I still have a few credit cards with a zero balance but his debt snowball premise has really helped me.

I'm glad budgeting carefully is helping you. His "snowball" however does cost more in interest but if it works more power to you. I just wished he was interested in educating people instead of simply wanting to sell books and ancillary items that teach a simplistic, and potentially harmful, model.

Edited March 27, 2016 by hegemony

[Newguy00]

I agree the snowball on credit card debt probably cost more in interest. It would help your score quicker though.... If you had one 20k card with 70% util on it and 2 store cards with $200 balances on a $300 card..... paying the store cards off quicker would raise your scores quicker since you don't have a balance on every single card in your portfolio.

 

But I think the snowball is more about helping people feel like they are making progress right away instead of drowning.

[cashnocredit]

I agree the snowball on credit card debt probably cost more in interest. It would help your score quicker though.... If you had one 20k card with 70% util on it and 2 store cards with $200 balances on a $300 card..... paying the store cards off quicker would raise your scores quicker since you don't have a balance on every single card in your portfolio.

 

But I think the snowball is more about helping people feel like they are making progress right away instead of drowning.

 

Understanding how FICO scores credit can be useful for debt management but I doubt paying off the store cards in the above scenario would help much. A 70% util on a 20k card is going to be the largest drag on scores by far and I don't think it helps objectively. OTOH, if it feels better and then results in paying down the biggie because of the psychology involved then great. Optimizing scores so you can get a lower interest rate card and possibly a zero rate transfer and good rates later would be worth it but doing so requires objectivity. Banks love the balance transfers because it often results in increased spending and sucks people into more debt. The only way to beat the system is to be as objective as possible and combine that with good budgeting.

[IndyPoolPlayer]

the Debt Snowball is strictly a psychological tool. When you pay something in full most people have a sense of accomplishment. Then you put that money to pay off something else and it continues. It doesn't pay off the highest rate, just picks off the lowest hanging fruit and then you work on the big stuff.

[mendelssohn]

Ok fair enough. I was just wondering. I still have a few credit cards with a zero balance but his debt snowball premise has really helped me.

DR does not have a monopoly on budgeting or avoiding debt.

[dansamy]

the Debt Snowball is strictly a psychological tool. When you pay something in full most people have a sense of accomplishment. Then you put that money to pay off something else and it continues. It doesn't pay off the highest rate, just picks off the lowest hanging fruit and then you work on the big stuff.

This. I'll wholeheartedly agree that DR doesn't have the market cornered on budgeting, money management, debt payoff, etc. What he does promote, fervently, is that personal finance is largely PERSONAL & much less about the math & logic.

[mendelssohn]

 

the Debt Snowball is strictly a psychological tool. When you pay something in full most people have a sense of accomplishment. Then you put that money to pay off something else and it continues. It doesn't pay off the highest rate, just picks off the lowest hanging fruit and then you work on the big stuff.

This. I'll wholeheartedly agree that DR doesn't have the market cornered on budgeting, money management, debt payoff, etc. What he does promote, fervently, is that personal finance is largely PERSONAL & much less about the math & logic.

Except he uses a cookie cutter method which is anything but personal.

[Daddy]

 

the Debt Snowball is strictly a psychological tool. When you pay something in full most people have a sense of accomplishment. Then you put that money to pay off something else and it continues. It doesn't pay off the highest rate, just picks off the lowest hanging fruit and then you work on the big stuff.

This. I'll wholeheartedly agree that DR doesn't have the market cornered on budgeting, money management, debt payoff, etc. What he does promote, fervently, is that personal finance is largely PERSONAL & much less about the math & logic.

 

 

I agree.

[Daddy]

This is a good friend of mine. Great family. They were struggling and in debt, prior to being introduced to Dave Ramsey's FPU. After doing the program, they changed everything and turned it around.

 

They now use credit cards and PIF each month, stacking up rewards.

 

Something about Dave resonated with them. Now, they are mature enough to be able to use credit cards only when they have the money in the bank to pay for it. Not everyone is that discipline. It doesn't matter that Dave Ramsey hates credit for those people who desperately need to hear something that will turn their financial lives around. If he works for you, great. That's all that matters. If you want to go back to using credit responsibly and stay debt free, more power to you.

 

[dansamy]

 

 

the Debt Snowball is strictly a psychological tool. When you pay something in full most people have a sense of accomplishment. Then you put that money to pay off something else and it continues. It doesn't pay off the highest rate, just picks off the lowest hanging fruit and then you work on the big stuff.

This. I'll wholeheartedly agree that DR doesn't have the market cornered on budgeting, money management, debt payoff, etc. What he does promote, fervently, is that personal finance is largely PERSONAL & much less about the math & logic.

Except he uses a cookie cutter method which is anything but personal.

 

Much like AA's approach is cookie cutter. Work the steps. Yes, it's formulaic and patronizing. And some people need that amount of prescribed hand holding.

[mendelssohn]

 

 

 

the Debt Snowball is strictly a psychological tool. When you pay something in full most people have a sense of accomplishment. Then you put that money to pay off something else and it continues. It doesn't pay off the highest rate, just picks off the lowest hanging fruit and then you work on the big stuff.

This. I'll wholeheartedly agree that DR doesn't have the market cornered on budgeting, money management, debt payoff, etc. What he does promote, fervently, is that personal finance is largely PERSONAL & much less about the math & logic.

Except he uses a cookie cutter method which is anything but personal.

Much like AA's approach is cookie cutter. Work the steps. Yes, it's formulaic and patronizing. And some people need that amount of prescribed hand holding.

I was just pointing that out because you said that it is personal, and his approach is not.

 

Some people can't manage credit and never will be able to. Many others just need to learn to fix the problems rather than the symptoms.

 

DR is one size fits all. If you used DR and now use CCs, you don't subscribe to him at all.

 

It's just tiresome reading posts here about half doing DR, and the half being done is budgeting and staying out of debt. CB preaches the same principles.

Edited March 30, 2016 by mendelssohn

[dansamy]

By personal, I mean the emotions tied to money and its management. I'm not trying to say that DR individualizes any approach to money management. A lot of people have trouble denying their inner two year old. No, DR's approach isn't personalized. But he is right about personal finance being personal in that it's something that individual people have to wrap their heads around, emotionally and psychologically. They have to learn to control themselves in order to ever control their finances.

[cashnocredit]

Mr. Money Mustache is a rather unique blog. The guy is the ultimate frugal budgeter but unlike DR, he also likes credit cards of the rewards variety.

 

Check out MMM's take:

 

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2014/10/13/credit-card-churning-for-mustachians-or-sucka-consumers/

[hegemony]

 

the Debt Snowball is strictly a psychological tool. When you pay something in full most people have a sense of accomplishment. Then you put that money to pay off something else and it continues. It doesn't pay off the highest rate, just picks off the lowest hanging fruit and then you work on the big stuff.

This. I'll wholeheartedly agree that DR doesn't have the market cornered on budgeting, money management, debt payoff, etc. What he does promote, fervently, is that personal finance is largely PERSONAL & much less about the math & logic.

 

 

He should explain the math to people instead of asking them to trust him. Feel good might be better for some, but hard facts from the math of his one-size fits all snowball can also be a wakeup call.

[mendelssohn]

Depending on how much people owe, and some of his listeners owe a LOT of money, and the different APRs, some people could be paying off their debt much faster.

 

I know when someone comes to CB asking for help with debt they are asked to list balances and APRs and given an explanation of why and how to pay the highest APR card first while paying the minimum on the others.

 

Just like DR, we give them advice on how to cut expenses, even when it means selling a car to get rid of a car payment.

 

The difference is that they save money with our advice, and also know why they are saving money.

 

A couple good links:

 

https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/finance/dave-ramseys-debt-snowball-bad-financial-advice/

 

http://www.lifehealthpro.com/2015/05/19/how-dave-ramseys-bad-math-leads-to-bad-advice?slreturn=1459377732

Edited March 30, 2016 by mendelssohn

[dansamy]

Overall, I prefer CB's approach to money, finances & credit. That's why I'm here & not at DR forums!