Who's doing the Dave Ramsey plan?

[Megan Turnidge]

Any fellow SSDers doing the Dave Ramsey plan right now/this year? I tried to get started last year, but we got off track because I was living in a mouse INFESTED trailer and we really needed to move for my sanity and our health. So, I wasn't really doing the debt snowball for the last half of the year. I'm recommitted this year and excited for tax return time - hubby and I both decided to put the entire return toward debt and we'll eliminate about 1/3 of our debt at that time! I'm excited! Every year we usually used our return to buy something fun, but not this year! I think it will be more fun to get some debt knocked out.

Who wants to be debt snowball buddies with me? lol

[crecia27]

We want to do this. Right now we are putting extra money away for a vacation we are taking in March but as soon as week get back we plan to try and snowball! In the meantime I've set our accounts up on Mint.com so I can see where we are wasting money.

[Megan Turnidge]

*high five* You can doooo it, Lucrecia!!!

[scrappinsweetie]

we have tried several times, but the whole only using cash thing stressed me out. i literally have panick attacks even though i KNOW i have enough money to pay. my hubby is pretty good at doing the snowball thing though. we just dont' follow the whole plan to a T. i do like the snowball effect though good luck!!

[Nettio]

Ooo, perfect timing, I'd love to be debt snowball buddies!

We're down to our two very last loans - Adam's student loan and our car. It's kind of frustrating because I feel like we are sooooo close to being debt-free and yet rationally, when I look at the numbers, I know it's going to take us awhile to pay them off since they're both pretty good sized. But our plan is to get the rest of the student loan paid off this year and then roll the minimum payment into the car payment so we can pay off the car faster and get rid of that monthly bill.

So my goal right now is to focus on budgeting. I was a savings-machine when Adam was deployed but that was a lot easier since I was hardly spending anything over our normal bills and food. But now that Adam's back, we're spending more so I want to keep a closer watch on where our money is going.

Are you planning on using YNAB for budgeting? (I thought in another thread you said you used it.) That's what I'm planning on using but I haven't used it since March so I signed up this morning for two of their free classes that are happening tonight. One's an intro to YNAB (which I'm hoping I can get Adam to watch so I don't have to explain everything to him) and the other is the budget workshop, which I'm hoping will force me to sit down and make the budget since I keep saying I'm going to and haven't yet. We'll see how it goes.

Originally Posted by scrappinsweetie

we have tried several times, but the whole only using cash thing stressed me out. i literally have panick attacks even though i KNOW i have enough money to pay. my hubby is pretty good at doing the snowball thing though. we just dont' follow the whole plan to a T. i do like the snowball effect though good luck!!

We've had good luck with the Dave Ramsey plan without using cash. You just have to be a bit more diligent in budgeting and tracking what you spend. It definitely takes more discipline but it can be done.

[Megan Turnidge]

Yay!! Sounds like you've been doing well on your snowball!

Yes, I use YNAB for budgeting... I'm pretty sure I got it because you recommended it last year somewhere in a thread here. haha I LOVE YNAB. It's excellent. Though I have no debt paid off to show for the last year, we did get on a budget and are doing well with that part. We do the cash system now and I've got my little fun Etsy envelope system for it and everything!

Originally Posted by Nettio

Ooo, perfect timing, I'd love to be debt snowball buddies!

We're down to our two very last loans - Adam's student loan and our car. It's kind of frustrating because I feel like we are sooooo close to being debt-free and yet rationally, when I look at the numbers, I know it's going to take us awhile to pay them off since they're both pretty good sized. But our plan is to get the rest of the student loan paid off this year and then roll the minimum payment into the car payment so we can pay off the car faster and get rid of that monthly bill.

So my goal right now is to focus on budgeting. I was a savings-machine when Adam was deployed but that was a lot easier since I was hardly spending anything over our normal bills and food. But now that Adam's back, we're spending more so I want to keep a closer watch on where our money is going.

Are you planning on using YNAB for budgeting? (I thought in another thread you said you used it.) That's what I'm planning on using but I haven't used it since March so I signed up this morning for two of their free classes that are happening tonight. One's an intro to YNAB (which I'm hoping I can get Adam to watch so I don't have to explain everything to him) and the other is the budget workshop, which I'm hoping will force me to sit down and make the budget since I keep saying I'm going to and haven't yet. We'll see how it goes.

[taracotta7]

I just wanted to encourage you ladies. We did the Ramsey plan a few years ago and we are DEBT FREE!!!!!!!! It took us a little over two years. As of last March, we only have our mortgage loan!!!! It is FREEING to say the least. Yes, we had some penny pinching hurts and struggles but it was ALL worth it. It is so true what he says..."Life like no one else so you can live like no one else".

YOU CAN DO THIS!!!!!! Also, I struggled with the cash thing. The only place I actually used cash was the grocery store. That is where I tend to "waste" money on extra treats or stuff for the kids. For the rest of our bills, we used an online envelope system (Crown Ministries) to track our budgets and spending habits. It was helpful for us.

[Julie Billingsley]

I am getting serious about this in 2011. I need to re-listen to my Dave Ramsey CDs and pull out the worksheets again. I had a subscription to his site, but that ran out and I think I'll just be doing it on paper instead. Saves money! Tara, I've done Crown Ministries too! In fact my husband and I were leaders of it for several years. Once I took Dave's class, I never looked back at Crown. Although the bible study of Crown was good, I much preferred the money management of Dave Ramsey.

So, what is YNAB?

[BrattyMeg]

Originally Posted by Julie Billingsley

So, what is YNAB?

You Need a Budget
http://www.youneedabudget.com/

We've done Dave Ramsey..kinda need to go back on it though b/c we've been serious money wasters as of late...

[joelsgirl]

We did the course this fall, but we don't have any debt. We've lived overseas for 8 of the 10 years we were married, so there hasn't been much need for debt. For example, when we lived in Indonesia we had a 4 bedroom house and rent was $2000 for the whole year.

Anyway, we are having a hard time keeping track of our expenses. I just always forget, but in the new year I am committed to keeping us on budget!

[ColleenSwerb]

I need to get MYSELF on a budget, lol. We have no credit card debt, so we consider ourselves to be good to go. But we have our mortgage, 2 car loans, and my student loan (which I pay almost twice the amount a month to get that done with ASAP).
Jordan is awesome with money. We save a lot each month thanks to him, lol. I'm the spender, he's the saver.

So yea. I need to get myself on a budget, just so I can argue with him over purchases. He would prefer I never buy anything ever, and I just can't live like that, lol. I need to be able to say look, I spent $100 this month, or $100 last month and haven't bought anything this month, etc. I meant to get started at the beginning of the month and I forgot.

[Megan Turnidge]

Originally Posted by ColleenSwerb

I need to get MYSELF on a budget, lol. We have no credit card debt, so we consider ourselves to be good to go. But we have our mortgage, 2 car loans, and my student loan (which I pay almost twice the amount a month to get that done with ASAP).
Jordan is awesome with money. We save a lot each month thanks to him, lol. I'm the spender, he's the saver.

So yea. I need to get myself on a budget, just so I can argue with him over purchases. He would prefer I never buy anything ever, and I just can't live like that, lol. I need to be able to say look, I spent $100 this month, or $100 last month and haven't bought anything this month, etc. I meant to get started at the beginning of the month and I forgot.

Even Dave Ramsey tells ya that you need what he calls "blow money." If you don't allow yourself a bit of money each month to spend on whatever you want, you are more likely to go over budget or hide purchases from your spouse. So you should decide with your hubby what a reasonable amount is for you each to have each month and the other isn't allowed to complain when you spend it or what you spend it on! DH and I each get $40 of blow money each month, but you can choose any number that fits your income/situation.

[Stacey42]

We started it about a year & half ago & paid off all our debt but the house in 6 months. Then we got a new car but at least had a decent downpayment saved up, more than we would have without Dave. We modified the cash only thing. Obviously I shop online & need a credit card for that but we allow a certain amount in a specific bank account that has a visa check card to cover that. The problem is DH forgets about the cash only thing half the time & ends up using the main account check card & not telling me. I take a fixed amount out each week & if he tells me he spent $50 on the card I'll deduct it from the fixed amount I take out. But half the time he doens't tell me so that $50 gets spent twice.

[ColleenSwerb]

Trust me Megan. I know. Jordan just....doesn't really care. He doesn't like when I spend money at Michael's, for example, but is allowed to buy a video game, or a new set of golf clubs. And it's not like I don't work, I actually make more than he does, lol. He's just....well....ridiculous. And stubborn. And ridiculous. LOL!

He HAS gotten better about it though. The constant fighting and me crying has worn him down some, LOL! I fully admit that I'm AWFUL with money. I had ridiculously bad spending habits before we got married. He bailed me out of quite a bit of debt so that we're now credit card debt-free. But, I'm also WAY better than I used to be. So in a month or two when I want to buy a new set of running sneakers, I'm going to do it and not feel bad, lol.

[Megan Turnidge]

I'm sorry, Col. That sucks. Maybe you should have him call Dave. He'll set him straight. hehe

[ColleenSwerb]

It is what it is, lol. I'm used to it, and he's getting better. He has said that when I pass the PE (which for the LOVE, better be this april) and get my pay raise, then my "allowance"/blow money can be what the pay raise is. We'll see. I have to pass the stupid thing first, then I'll worry about spending money, lol.

[newfiemountiewife]

I don't do a plan, but we're also debt free. We just put whatever we could onto our debt. It made it lean for awhile, but we are glad we did it.

My van is leased, and I rent (don't own...not much point when you move every 3-4 years LOL). I use those prepaid Visas for online shopping and whatnot, and it works great.

I do NOT budget well though, and that is something that I am hoping to do through the year. I coach skating in the winter, which is good money then, but when summer rolls around, that money is gone, and I really need to budget on Tony's salary, and just roll mine into savings. That's my plan...in my head anyway LOL.

[AmyM]

Yes the plan works and yes it can be done regardless of your salary. We don't have one single credit card and the only debt is about $20k left on the house and an old loan down to less than $1k. So we're pretty much broke and drive cars that are 10 years old but I guess in the long run it's better than the debt and/or losing everything. I've resisted taking out any loans for my business too, and that has been the hardest thing financially ever. But I sleep pretty well at night, with my ugly old comforter

Go for it. Dave Ramsey works.

[littlekiwi]

I NEED to clear my debt except for my student loan as that is paid once I earn over a certain amount as per the tax department. Right now I have such bad credit I can not rent a house, get a loan, go for certain jobs that require a credit check, have a credit card (thats what got me into the mess in the first place so not being able to have one is a good thing). I probably owe about $5000 all up and then about $27000 on my student loan as I add just under 10k a year (last year was about $7500) The student loan will probably have about another $25000 to 30000 before I am done with my studies if I dont get a District Health Board Scholarship

[kayce]

This thread seriously motivated me yesterday to investigate the Dave Ramsey program. I was so impressed I surfed his site and the forum there all day. I talked to dh about it last night and he was thrilled about doing the program. We are going to do the online class as soon as possible. Thanks for starting this thread and everybody who posted. I so need to get out of debt!

[Megan Turnidge]

Originally Posted by kayce

This thread seriously motivated me yesterday to investigate the Dave Ramsey program. I was so impressed I surfed his site and the forum there all day. I talked to dh about it last night and he was thrilled about doing the program. We are going to do the online class as soon as possible. Thanks for starting this thread and everybody who posted. I so need to get out of debt!

How awesome!!! I love Dave. He just gives it to ya straight. Never sugar coats it. Good luck with the plan, Kayce!

[Megan Turnidge]

Originally Posted by AmyM

Yes the plan works and yes it can be done regardless of your salary. We don't have one single credit card and the only debt is about $20k left on the house and an old loan down to less than $1k. So we're pretty much broke and drive cars that are 10 years old but I guess in the long run it's better than the debt and/or losing everything. I've resisted taking out any loans for my business too, and that has been the hardest thing financially ever. But I sleep pretty well at night, with my ugly old comforter

Go for it. Dave Ramsey works.

WTG!!! You've done awesome! We're super broke too... driving our clunker car and I've only got mismatched hand-me-down furniture in my house... but it's so much better than having loans and more debt in order to have nice things.

[Nettio]

Originally Posted by mturnidge

Yay!! Sounds like you've been doing well on your snowball!

Yes, I use YNAB for budgeting... I'm pretty sure I got it because you recommended it last year somewhere in a thread here. haha I LOVE YNAB. It's excellent. Though I have no debt paid off to show for the last year, we did get on a budget and are doing well with that part. We do the cash system now and I've got my little fun Etsy envelope system for it and everything!

Oh ok, I remember recommending it and you looking into it and then I thought I saw in another thread you saying you loved it so that's really cool. I'm glad it's helping!

Originally Posted by Julie Billingsley

I am getting serious about this in 2011. I need to re-listen to my Dave Ramsey CDs and pull out the worksheets again. I had a subscription to his site, but that ran out and I think I'll just be doing it on paper instead. Saves money! Tara, I've done Crown Ministries too! In fact my husband and I were leaders of it for several years. Once I took Dave's class, I never looked back at Crown. Although the bible study of Crown was good, I much preferred the money management of Dave Ramsey.

So, what is YNAB?

I know Meg already linked you up to YNAB but I just wanted to add that one of reasons I really like YNAB is that it's not just budgeting software, it's budgeting software with a methodology built into it. So it's not just like - ok here ya go, now budget! It has 4 rules that are designed to really help you succeed in managing your money. It works really well with Dave Ramsey as well since some of the methodology is similar - like giving every dollar a job.

[Megan Turnidge]

Originally Posted by Nettio

Oh ok, I remember recommending it and you looking into it and then I thought I saw in another thread you saying you loved it so that's really cool. I'm glad it's helping!

I know Meg already linked you up to YNAB but I just wanted to add that one of reasons I really like YNAB is that it's not just budgeting software, it's budgeting software with a methodology built into it. So it's not just like - ok here ya go, now budget! It has 4 rules that are designed to really help you succeed in managing your money. It works really well with Dave Ramsey as well since some of the methodology is similar - like giving every dollar a job.

I also love that your budget and account stuff is completely linked. When I record my transactions and pick a category from my budget, I can see right there in the drop down how much money I have left budgeted for that category without even having to switch over to look at my budget. Then it automatically shows me if I'm looking at my budget how much I've spent for each category. Totally awesome. Love it.

Also, they give a free week trial and I didn't have money at the end of the week to buy the software - but I'd already decided I loved it. So I emailed them and they extended my trial like 2-3 more weeks until I could buy it!

[Nettio]

Originally Posted by ColleenSwerb

Trust me Megan. I know. Jordan just....doesn't really care. He doesn't like when I spend money at Michael's, for example, but is allowed to buy a video game, or a new set of golf clubs. And it's not like I don't work, I actually make more than he does, lol. He's just....well....ridiculous. And stubborn. And ridiculous. LOL!

He HAS gotten better about it though. The constant fighting and me crying has worn him down some, LOL! I fully admit that I'm AWFUL with money. I had ridiculously bad spending habits before we got married. He bailed me out of quite a bit of debt so that we're now credit card debt-free. But, I'm also WAY better than I used to be. So in a month or two when I want to buy a new set of running sneakers, I'm going to do it and not feel bad, lol.

Col, it sounds to me like you guys have what Dave Ramsey would call a Nerd vs Free Spirit problem. The key is to create a budget that balances the needs and wants of both parties, not a budget that meets the needs of one but not the other.

[Nettio]

Originally Posted by mturnidge

I also love that your budget and account stuff is completely linked. When I record my transactions and pick a category from my budget, I can see right there in the drop down how much money I have left budgeted for that category without even having to switch over to look at my budget. Then it automatically shows me if I'm looking at my budget how much I've spent for each category. Totally awesome. Love it.

Also, they give a free week trial and I didn't have money at the end of the week to buy the software - but I'd already decided I loved it. So I emailed them and they extended my trial like 2-3 more weeks until I could buy it!

It's funny because up until a year ago when I discovered YNAB, Adam and I had been using an Excel spreadsheet that Adam created that was pretty much YNAB without us ever even knowing that YNAB existed. I hadn't realized how unique it was until I started looking around for budgeting software and couldn't find anything that even came close to doing things the way we did. When I finally found YNAB I was SO excited because finally someone else GOT what we were trying to do.

[ColleenSwerb]

That would require making a budget, which he refuses to do. LOL!

Stubborn, stubborn, stubborn.

He's gotten better about it, and I've gotten better about recognizing my wants vs my needs. Yes, I still spend money, but I spend it more carefully now. I do slip up (I bought a blanket at Target this week. It was clearanced to $14 and is beautiful, but realistically, we don't need another blanket in this house, lol.) but not as much anymore. The problem is that he views pretty much all of my spending as frivolous. Remember the running sneaker problem last spring? I didn't need new sneakers because when HE ran, HE ran in crappy old sneakers and was fine. The fact that my sneakers were old and crappy AND causing me pain, was irrelevant. Because he's stubborn and always right. It's awesome. ::sigh::

But when he's arguing with me over underwear, which I only buy during the semi-annual sale at VS, and only once a year, I get tired of it. Yea, I spent $100 on 3 bras, but they'll last me 5+ years and actually FIT me now since I've lost some weight and it's come off my chest. A worthy investment to me. And when he says things like "bras should be $5 for the amount of material they actually use, that's insane", there's just no reasoning with him, lol. I spent it, I'm not returning it, he'll deal with it.

[aly321]

Hmmm I haven't ever heard of the YNAB. Sounds interesting. Worth it? I don't have any debt except our house, but am interested in being able to SAVE more money!

[Megan Turnidge]

Originally Posted by aly321

Hmmm I haven't ever heard of the YNAB. Sounds interesting. Worth it? I don't have any debt except our house, but am interested in being able to SAVE more money!

Everyone needs a budgeting system... whether they have debt or not. You can give YNAB a test run for a week for free and decide if you want to spend the $60 to keep it.

[Nettio]

Originally Posted by aly321

Hmmm I haven't ever heard of the YNAB. Sounds interesting. Worth it? I don't have any debt except our house, but am interested in being able to SAVE more money!

All your budget does is give your money a job. Whether that job is savings, debt or spending is totally up to you.

[Angie4b1g]

Jordan gives me high blood pressure.

[adrianka]

Originally Posted by ColleenSwerb

That would require making a budget, which he refuses to do. LOL!

Stubborn, stubborn, stubborn.

He's gotten better about it, and I've gotten better about recognizing my wants vs my needs. Yes, I still spend money, but I spend it more carefully now. I do slip up (I bought a blanket at Target this week. It was clearanced to $14 and is beautiful, but realistically, we don't need another blanket in this house, lol.) but not as much anymore. The problem is that he views pretty much all of my spending as frivolous. Remember the running sneaker problem last spring? I didn't need new sneakers because when HE ran, HE ran in crappy old sneakers and was fine. The fact that my sneakers were old and crappy AND causing me pain, was irrelevant. Because he's stubborn and always right. It's awesome. ::sigh::

But when he's arguing with me over underwear, which I only buy during the semi-annual sale at VS, and only once a year, I get tired of it. Yea, I spent $100 on 3 bras, but they'll last me 5+ years and actually FIT me now since I've lost some weight and it's come off my chest. A worthy investment to me. And when he says things like "bras should be $5 for the amount of material they actually use, that's insane", there's just no reasoning with him, lol. I spent it, I'm not returning it, he'll deal with it.

Ha! Good for you. :-)

With bras it's not material, but the "build" that counts (I know that you know). :-) With a wrong bra you can get serious back problems, and from my (European) experience I can say that the really cheap ones are crap. But I guess he wouldn't know about, ahem, boob-caused back problems. ;-)))

$100 on 3 bras is actually rather nice in my view (the ones I buy cost about $50 a piece if I'm lucky), even though I'm not familiar with US pricing, I admit as much. :-)

[Nettio]

Originally Posted by ColleenSwerb

The problem is that he views pretty much all of my spending as frivolous.

What he needs to learn is that even if he doesn't understand why something is important, the fact that it's important to you means it should matter to him. It's not right for him to just dismiss your feelings just because he doesn't get it - and this is true both with finances and your feelings in general. The idea that just because he doesn't see the need for new running shoes or new bras means they're unneeded is just crazy.

[carriesmom]

Originally Posted by Angie4b1g

Jordan gives me high blood pressure.

Me too.

I don't actually follow Dave Ramsey's plan per se, although I am very familiar with it. I have read one of his books and I subscribe to quite a few personal finance blogs. I love the idea of a debt snowball, I love debt snowflaking even more. I will say that not everyone out there agrees with everything Dave Ramsey says,but they like what he is trying to achieve. You have to find what works for you.

I love YNAB and once we get some money available I plan on purchasing it. Right now, all of our money goes to bills and what not. There is pretty much nothing left over and it has been that way since I lost my job back in June. Right now, my first priority is to get our savings/emergency fund built back up. Hopefully, my DH will get his bar card soon which will add to our income and I'll get more regular clients. But until then, we are day by day. It's scary and I don't want to get back to this place ever again.

[ColleenSwerb]

Originally Posted by Nettio

What he needs to learn is that even if he doesn't understand why something is important, the fact that it's important to you means it should matter to him. It's not right for him to just dismiss your feelings just because he doesn't get it - and this is true both with finances and your feelings in general. The idea that just because he doesn't see the need for new running shoes or new bras means they're unneeded is just crazy.

Yea, I know. It's an argument that we have every few months and then he's better for a while and then reverts back to his old stubborn ways. I'm working on working on him though.

[maryinaz]

Col, my husband is just the opposite. Doesn't know what I spend, doesn't care. But it also means I don't think he has enough respect for money. We have never been on a budget, although I've tried. It's just hard getting him to do anything with me. I may have to give YNAB a try and see if he is willing to do it, because goodness knows, we need it.

We are in the VERY most expensive time of our lives with 1 in college and the others close behind and all of them having sports and activities going on. Not to mention them all eating more and having 2 extra drivers. Oh, to go back to those grade school days...

[glumirk]

I just downloaded YNAB. Currently our only debt is our mortgage, but we've really been slacking on tracking our expenses and it's only going to get harder with 2 kids. Now I've just got to figure out how to adapt our current budget to YNAB.