wife and i have been trying to get out of debt and be good and do the right things but it was taking us forever. i was a financial adviser for years and i knew the right things to tell a client, but money is behavior, not math. we all know how to save money. but you have to DO the behavior to actually save it, etc.

so after several years of not much progress, our renter passed away while living in our small rental house in the city. we had to gut the whole thing and re-do basically everything, as she had let it get pretty nasty over the last year and a half since her health went downhill.

during the project we discussed ideas and decided we could get way ahead fast if we moved back into it, despite having much less room and being in a not so nice area.

so we listed our home, knowing the market timing was good. guy walked into our open-house and bought it within an hour. even offered 10k more than we asked.

we close on the 13th and this week has been a bit crazy...been 3 months of cleaning and fixing and painting and etc. every night after work and all weekend every weekend.

in short, i decided to take the advice i had been giving for years and live on less and accelerate our debt repayment.

with this sale of the house, we will wipe out more than half our debt, and it looks like 2 to 3 years in the little house will get us out completely. going from a 950 house payment to a 255 house payment, on the little 39k house i bought when i was single.

this is still the land of opportunity, and i am taking advantage of my opportunity. it also woke me up when corona virus hit and boss said 'you and you and you are not essential' and i ended up at home for 2 weeks. i worried like hell...how easily could he have said 'we are closing and you're unemployed' and i would have been in a very bad spot.

i don't make huge money as a QC manager, but i make enough that the two of us can be debt free in a couple years and then build our dream house in the country.

if i can do it you can too. rip off the bandaid and get 'er done. might be the best thing you ever do.

Will be nice to be able to have the freedom and flexibility of not owing anyone anything.

But I also am looking forward to leaving huge tips for a waitress or surprising a single mom or just leaving anonymous donations.

Make sure what side they vote before doing so. Lots of single mom's pull the anti-American lever.

And good luck with everything.

Thanks. Been a long road and I am willing to be uncomfortable for a couple years if it means freedom.

We run VERY little debt on depreciating assets (automobiles etc..) and zero debt on discretionary purchases (dining out, clothing, vacations etc.) but being debt free does not equal financial security. Trying to build real wealth without financing, for the average person, is going to be tough.
Wise investments financed with reasonable interest rates with good cash flow are rarely a bad idea.
A payment on a rental property that cash flows $8,000/year after expenses is a lot different than paying 25% interest on credit card debt spent on dining out and shopping sprees.

Dave Ramsey has misled a lot of people into thinking being debt free equates to being successful. It's not.

Most important lesson I've learned in life, is that that there's very few problems that hard work can't fix.
If you wake up in the morning broke, you probably shouldn't have been sleeping.

And fugg leaving big tips for waitresses and single mothers of unknown character, and emotional donations to manipulative charities. I'll invest in my children's futures. I might owe the bank, but I owe no one other than my family ANYthing.

To each their own. I am going to do what makes me feel good and what makes me free.

The people dave ramsey speaks to need to hear what he says. If they were capable of leveraging assets and day trading they wouldn't be short on the rent.

Good for both of you. Seriously. A man should live life as he sees it.

The best way help single mothers is with dollar bills, one at a time, tucked into a G-string. You can thank me later.

As long as he's wearing a mask.

Smart... glad for you

Thanks. Maybe my sharing the idea will help someone else as well.

The main tenets of Dave Ramsey's "teachings" are common sense.
Don't spend more than you make.....earth shattering.

If you're satisfied with living in a small house in a bad part of town, risking the safety of yourself and your family, have at it. I have no desire to do the 9-5, 40hr a week gig and give what little I have to some dope addict 40 year old tramp slinging hash at the diner. Life isn't a Rob Reiner movie.

What's dave ramsey have to do with me deciding to pay off the cars and student loan so I can use my earnings to live a better life?

Smart would've been not running up a bunch of debt to begin with. Not trying to be a dick, just being honest.

Agreed.

My personal life story proves different, jackmountain.

I have heard many times......"why would I pay off my house, car, and credit card when I can keep my investments, making more money".

Unfortunately.......those higher potential investments usually involve higher risk.
This last 6 months being proof.

That's just an excuse to keep spending anyway.

You can be debt free....and frugally invest.....if you use your brain.

Heard that around 50% of lottery winners file for bankruptcy, within 5 years. That's obviously a problem with money management.

Kicked out on my ear on my 18th birthday, by the step-mother. Both parents dead.

Bought my first house (at auction) at age 20 for $15,150. Paid it off in 2 years.

Got married.

At age 30, bought an 80 acre farm.......Paid off by age 32. Debt-free since age 32.

Bought a 120 acre farm at age 37......with my money. Still have 200 acres today.

The only chance the 5 son's had at latest-greatest namebrands, was Salvation Army and Goodwill stores.

I did pay their college tuition.......if the grades were kept up.

We buy vehicles, do not finance them. Prices matter when you withdraw the money.

Retired at age 58......wanted to at age 55. Living happily ever after.

Ramsey ain't all that, but he has cashed in on common sense.

Be smart.....don't be stupid. Manage your money. A lot like discipline with your fork.

You can invest and still pay down your debt.

Don't wait for that imaginary ship to come in. Heard plenty of those 'plans'.

DON'T PLAY THE LOTTERY!

It's apparent you lost a good lick selling your home. I've never known anyone that would pay $10k more than the asking price for something. I'm sure glad neither one of you advise me on how to make money. Getting out and staying out of debt was true freedom for us. This China flu hoax has put everything into perspective for those of us that live off of rental income. You can't retire and have debt you can't repay.

No we didn't lose a dime. We went 30k more than we paid 4 yrs ago and the guy offered more. And the appraisal was for the amount of the offer. So we did fine.

Lotta negative jerks here unhappy about my personal decisions lol

Glad I don't drag around such b.s. in my life lol

You make your money when you buy. 4 years ago the real estate market was a buyer's market, now it's a seller's market. I don't give a damn what you do, but you won't ever have anything with your thought process. The person that bought it will probably flip it and make $50k.

Debt has always made me uncomfortable. I think that's been a good thing.

I've heard quite a few credit card horror stories. A young man I once worked with mentioned that he was $60,000 in debt with credit cards,..had a wife and two kids. I know about what his take home pay was because it was the same as mine.

He had enslaved himself with credit cards. He was working his life away just to pay the interest on $60,000 of credit card debt.

I've heard other stories too. Some people just can't handle a credit card.

I've had one in my wallet for decades. I'll keep one until it expires and never use it. The last time I used a credit card was in a gun shop about 15 years ago. They had a stack of boxed up Springfield Armory Mil Spec 1911's for $349.95. I didn't have a checkbook with me and didn't feel like going to the bank, so I put it on the card,...paid for it when the bill came in.

Haven't used it since. I don't recall using it before.

Well done.

Success is not about having more money, it’s having enough.

Gee I wish the 2 real estate agents and the appraiser and the auditor all knew as much about the real estate valuations in my zip code as true grit...lol

Politicians would prefer everyone stayed deep in debt. They give tax incentives to promote it.

Politicians would prefer everyone smoked.....given the taxes on a pack of cigs.

Politicians would prefer everyone play the lottery.

Politicians would prefer everyone else die when they reach Social Security/Medicare age.

Take care of yourself. Let the Jones's be the politician's poster child.

Paying off the mortgage is one of the best reliefs you can have. My 1st wife and I had been paying double payments on this one for a number of years so we'd have it clear when I retired. Then she got cancer and passed away in '06. I got a nice death benefit from her employer, enough to pay if off and then some so I decided to do just that. My brother was pretty good with finances and he recommended that, since investments were paying a higher rate than my mortgage was costing, I invest it and keep paying the mortgage. I'd be money ahead. However, I wanted to be out of debt so I paid it off. That was in '07. Then came the '08 stock market crash. I would have taken a huge hit if I'd invested it. Instead, I was sitting on ZERO debt.

The future is never secure. Being debt free is the best protection you can have against the unknown.

Sounds like you and the wife have thought it through, devised a plan that works for you and are executing the plan. Nice job. That makes you smarter and more disciplined than most.

There are plenty of folks (as you can see) who have to tell you that your approach to personal finance sucks because it isn't their approach. So what? Maybe they have some sort of insecurity issues because I didn't notice in the OP that you were asking for financial advice.

It doesn't matter if you fall into the "debt free" camp or the "use leverage to make money" camp or somewhere in between. If you are making responsible financial decisions with an end goal in mind, more than likely you'll wind up better off than most. The only unsolicited advice I will offer is to take the time to educate yourself as much as possible on both approaches so that you can truly make the best decisions for yourself and your family.

good plan. i listened to DR 30 years ago and while i haven't done exactly as he advises, we have kept debt to a minimum and savings to the maximum and lived well under our means but still managed to raise a family and have some fun. it has paid off and we are at the point in life where we are reaping the rewards. when i ride around here and see the 500k houses with the 60k vehicles in the driveway, i wonder how many of those people are sweating bullets about now.

To the Op - congrats, that’s awesome. Stick with it and you’ll be glad you did.

So many people live beyond their means it’s scary. And I’m not talking a little bit either. Rem141 is right about the people sweating with the $500k houses and $60k vehicles. And in some places you can add another zero onto the house price

I’ve got a close friend and we’ve been fairly even in terms of our earnings thru the years. I’d be willing to bet we have roughly equal assets. Difference is I own my real estate with minimal debt and he is leveraged to the hilt on real estate of roughly the same value. His risk profile has always been higher than mine and he is a smart guy so it will probably work out for him in the long run, but I can promise you I sleep better at night

Started taking DR's advice back in '07. Haven't had a credit card (except for a corporate card) or a vehicle payment since, and won't if I can help it.

One thing I figured out: BUDGET!
Now, this doesn't really mean you have to live like a pauper. If you have the money, live like you want. But budget everything. If you want to make a double house payment, budget. Groceries, budget. Utilities, budget. Guns, budget. Wife's clothes, budget. Weed and Hookers, budget. Budget according to what you want to spend and save, and go from there. A budget is your plan to get out of debt. It can be revised whenever you like, but have one.
Lots of folks re-finance, downsize homes, or just wait on a "light month" to pay on their debt (ain't no such thing as a "light month"), but they never have a plan, and wind up doing the same thing they did before, which is spending more money than they make.

It's a bit easier with auto-withdraw these days. If you want to pay your car off quicker, just add $100 a month (or whatever) to the auto withdraw. Same for the house, second mortgage, whatever. Budget those numbers in. It comes out automatically. You never miss it. You're just aware you have more money when you pay something off.

You are on the right track my friend. We paid our house off seven years ago. We’ve always saved and invested monthly, but being debt free allows us to live comfortably on my wife’s income and invest mine. I am now 47, and intend to retire next year.
Most people don’t live within their means because the allure of instant gratification is strong. I can assure it is well worth the effort.

Yep

Good for you op, wife and I are doing the same. We’ve had our house paid off for several yrs, but we’ve had other loans. Paid off a car and equity loan during the rona virus, we have our half of our two boys college loans and 2 other car payments left. My mom passed away 2 months ago and when the estate is settled we’re paying off everything. Looking forward to being 100% debt free .

Yep. Put that $700 of mortgage savings to good use

We're in the process.
Fixing all of the minor things and imperfections at our current home in Virginia[getting it ready so to speak].
Sitting on the porch late last night having a beverage and surveying my surrounds it hit me that even if we wanted to stay we're getting to the age where it's hard to keep up with all of the maintenance required for the home/land we love so much.

Between the landscaping, keeping the all wood exterior[just completed washing and staining], pushing the woods back 365 days a year etc it's just becoming too much.
Our other house in Tennessee is low maintenance exterior-wise and I'm starting to like that, just can't do neighbors after 30+ years without.

Good for you!

And the first thing you'll discover is that you WON'T be uncomfortable!

I became solvent at the age of 37, and have remained that way for the next 30+ years.

I have what most would consider a modest home ( 2000K sq ft.) and what anyone would consider a modest income, if not sub-modest.

I don't have a 22ft. fishing boat, or a 38 ft. camper/trailer/motorhome or a brand new $80k Silverado pickup.

I can go on a month long vacation for less than the gas and insurance cost on a motorhome.

I can go on multiple guided fishing trips for less than just the maintenance costs on a boat.

I can rent virtually any vehicle I want for vacations and run the schitt out of it for less than one truck payment.

Its not rocket surgery, and its not hard...

Scurry and hustle and bustle. History is filled with "wise" people who left their "fruits" to those who squandered them. 4 score and 10 is what we get, and often times the last 20 are health compromised.

The only treasure worth anything in the long run is a relationship with Jesus Christ.

"time and tide wait for no man"

You ever figure what that investment would be worth today?

Smart to get out of debt with this economy. Mentioned it before but its crazy the amount of people buying big non essential items.

Good for you.

We got the house paid off long ago and have done some updating on it over the years.

The last stuff we did cost about 24,000 and most of it has been paid off.

It is nice not having a house payment that can now go into something else.

I have been doubling up on principal payments for several years and have seven payments to go on the house. The timing looks great because not only will there be no more of that, but I'll also be able to start drawing my SS and continue to work without penalties until I've padded my 401k a bit. It has been tough and I've had to forego most hunting during this time, but it's gonna be sweet when I get through with my moves here.

One of the most disconcerting things I've dealt with in the last 14 years has been Bank of America's acquisition of our paper. I especially look forward seeing that sorry bunch of SOBs in my rearview mirror.

We have been following a "strict" budget since the day after our marriage 44+ years ago. Not because we were really planning ahead to save for retirement, but because of a limited income. In our early life together, after our recurring monthly commitments, we had about $60 for groceries per month. It was tough but we made it through those times. Eventually, I started getting some raises and my bride went back to work after both kids were in school. I pushed forward in my career, she went back to college while working full time and got her business degree. She got several nice promotions and we were both able to come close to maxing out 401k contributions. We re-financed our house in 2013 at 3% on a 15 year note. Made double, sometimes triple, principle payments and paid it off in early March this year. THAT felt/feels good. We are not deep in debt. and never have been, but by the end of this year we will be debt free outside of the recurring bills. We have 2 vehicles, both paid for. Bride retired in 2015, I did the same at the end of 2017. We both get an SSA check and have savings available if needed. We NEVER fell behind on any bills, recurring or not. We do not and have not lived "high off the hog", are now comfortable and can live at the level we want.

We have told our kids we are spending our savings as we wish to and there might be something left for them after we're gone.

Good for you folks, stick to your guns.

The vast majority of folks will never have any political clout of their own. The vast majority of people will never have enough $$ to buy political clout. The vast majority of folks will not have enough $$ to bend markets to their will. Being free from debt is the closest most will ever get to being "free".

If you own everything outright and your only obligations are Ins, Property Taxes, utilities, and groceries, you can get by on a WHOLE LOT LESS $$ than you ever thought possible. When you're debt-free, you can AFFORD to be principled.

The thought of the OP being a financial adviser is terrifying.

Must be terrifying to not have everyone agree with your opinions. But I was fully qualified and tested. More than some of you opinionated arseholes can claim. And I was damn good at it.

And i got out of that business because of the difficulty and futility of arguing with idiots who will never understand common sense. Only so long you can stand dealing with idiots who WANT to fail.

More times than not this is the statement by someone who has nothing and never will Have anything. More Money offers more opportunity

Money can't buy happiness, but it can buy you things that make you happy.

Hah! There ya go

Money can buy things that give you joy.

Rosebud.......

Pretty common around here for people to "bid "10k over asking,

And money can't buy happiness,but it can buy you a nice yacht where you can pull up beside it.lol "david lee roth"

Congrats to all of you achieving personal finance goals.

With our country's approach to printing money, I'm not sure how much our dollars are gonna be worth in the next few years. The "work hard so you can save" mantra may go right out the window, when your $20 bill can't buy you a loaf of bread in retirement.

Zero debt, feels good.
Good to OP for good plan.

Debt is not always bad, If I could buy good farm land at a good price, and, if it keeps going higher, I'd inherit $10,000 land with a $6000 mortgage.

When I hear a story as complicated as yours and you end up selling your main residence to solve it????

My personal choices have nothing to do with advice I gave to clients.

And no one asked for your opinion. Learn to see things you don't like and keep scrolling.

Was hoping to share inspiration and what it ended up with was opinionated hate filled jerks running their mouths with no information.

Welcome to the fire.

Don't blame those who have moved on. I am about to do so myself.

Anyone who remembers the 18% interest rates in the very early 80s should be uncomfortable with debt, esp stupid debt on toys and useless stuff. Lots of high debt folks lost their homes during that when they had to renegotiate the mortage.

I paid off the house in Dec 2017. Two newer vehicles paid for, no consumer debt. I roll the old mortgage payment now into a savings account.

Most of all we all have our health, the kids are all fine. That is our biggest blessing.

About half of us... maybe more... said Congratulations.

Don't whine about the pisspots... half of America is a pisspot...

Yep you're right