by Randy &Sue  at February 05 2010 8:21 PM

We just started today baby step 1 the day we read the book we cant wait financial freedom !!!!is within our grasp THANK YOU Dave

by michael johnson  at February 04 2010 4:34 PM

dave sir , the few times i get to listen to your programme it renew my zest in life to keep out of debt in which i am doing just that.. my question is i make 34,ooo.oo a year would it be wise to purchase a nissan frontier for almost 25,000 and try to pay it off in two years or go for something cheaper.i have no mortage etc i can save $1000.00 a month

by Valerie  at February 03 2010 7:05 AM

I have been paying for my daughter to go to the local state college, because that was what I could afford. Well, after two years, she has decided she needs "the college experience" and is willing to take out loans to go to a private college to finish the rest of her degree. She wants to live on campus. She has 1 1/2 years left. She is taking out approximately 25,000 more dollars than necessary to complete her degree by making this change. And she still wants to go to grad school. I am perplexed as to what to say to her to change her mine.

by Normal Woman  at February 02 2010 5:58 PM

This comment is for Mark from 1/31. Don't stop paying on your cards. That only invites more trouble. Make sure you continue making your minimum monthly payment. Take a good hard look at your budget (and if you don't have one, start one NOW). Cut out all unnecessary expenses (cancel memberships, subscriptions, cable, cell phone, etc.). If you still can't afford to pay your bills and start saving towards your BS1, then get a second (or third, etc.) job. Also, sell everything but the kids. Seriously, if it's not necessary, sell it. Good luck in your journey!

by reneeb  at February 01 2010 8:54 PM

I'm just now starting the Debt program, I have a question? I have already been foreclosed on my home; I have student loans and owe taxes. Where do I start to begin to get my credit back in order. I have already begun to pay my taxes off, but I need to start on my student loans. I don't have credit cards, I paid those off years ago. I need some good sound advice. Help please.

by Mark  at January 31 2010 4:45 PM

How do we save for our Baby Step 1 when we are leaving pay check to pay check right now? Do I stop paying some of my credit cards in order to save the $1,000 up quickly?

by Kristi  at January 29 2010 10:43 PM

We have been trying to get out of debt for about 5 years...... and it is taking a long time! student loans, car loans almost done with the credit card pym. I have an apt. 3 hours away from home and come home on weekends. We are thankful for our jobs and God's blessings. We just get physically and mentally tired! My husband has been doing a lot of overtime. We aren't together, so it's hard to talk, but we talk on the phone. There's a lot of things that we could cut out, but live in a $250/month house pym, so that has enabled us to afford to pay rent for me. It has just been wearing us down. We could budget better, I know....... it's hard! Anyone else? I'm whining, sorry, God is good, we are blessed!

by Mark  at January 29 2010 12:35 PM

We are working towards Financial Peace through your program, I recently lost 1/2 my income do to the lagging economy, and found out this week that my base salary would be cut another $100.00 per week. We are behind on bills and I don't see anychange in the near future. I've been thinking that Bankrupsy and or Debt Consolidation may be next in our future, we have been woring on the debt snowball however since November we hve not been able to work on that.. What do we do?

by sue  at January 28 2010 5:58 PM

Thanks to Dave we are debt free & we have our 6 month emergency fund in place. Two months ago I was diagnosed with cancer and I am so greatful money is not something we have to worry about! I also took extended disability insurance at work as Dave recommends. Now if I need the time, I know we can do it. Thanks for peace of mind Dave!!

by ryan  at January 27 2010 7:16 PM

How do you budget when your checks are never the same? I get paid by the hour and my hours are never the same. It makes it a little difficult when how much you bring in is diffrent week to week.

by LW  at January 27 2010 3:20 PM

Should we pay debt that's already in collections first or focus on credit card debt we are struggling to keep current?

by Diana Weber  at January 26 2010 12:56 PM

I have just done a budget on l/23/l0 and I am 67 years of age!!How did this happen?I am learning so much each time I venture out to look and my fears and early family patterns. My parents were cattle farmers and noone ever knew what our income actually was or kept books on what we spent. The needs of the farm ruled. I just learned how I was still living like my parents with great fears about money. Thanks for allowing me to let this out. There is no disgrace if I am willing to grow and to change. I saw where I was $2500 "over-budget" each month. Diana

by Pastor  at January 26 2010 7:40 AM

This comment is for Deidre. Have patience and wait on the Lord Jesus. I want to be out of debt to and am not. I don't make some of the salaries that you hear but I've got food, shelter, clothing and a loving family. I Thank God for his blessings and I pray that he will help me to wait on him. His Grace is sufficient. Wait on the Lord and be of good courage, wait on the Lord. God is slowest man I've ever seen to never be late. God is too right to do wrong He's too good to do bad and to wise to make a mistake. Wait on the Lord.

by Jordan  at January 23 2010 11:04 AM

I just got TMM and read it in one day. I couldn't put it down. My wife is going to start reading the book as well so we are on the same page. We have been wanting to be out of debt for so long. We have $50,000 between cars and credit cards. Here is to Prayer, Hope and Determination to having baby step 1 & 2 done in two years.

by Sherri Latini  at January 22 2010 5:07 PM

I just put my credit cards through the shredder and it felt as though a little bit of the debt chains were loosened. I am sick and tired of being a slave to these creditors. I have been unemployed for four months but thankfully just began a new job. I am working diligently to try and catch up on my debts and fund my $1000 emergency fund.

by Mary  at January 20 2010 10:50 PM

I have put my family in finanical ruin. Both my husband and I have very good jobs and make pretty good money. My debit has overwhelmed my life, robbing peter to pay paul. I have no other choice but to withdraw my thrift savings so we can make room to have some money. I dont have very much in my thrift saving and they are taxing me alot of money. I do not want to go bankrupt. I dont see that light at the end of the tunnel!

by Kraig  at January 20 2010 9:59 PM

Just getting started on our TMMO working up the budget was a task to say the least. With this being the first month I know that there will be adjustments in the next few months but I am looking forward to becoming debt free.

by Houston K.  at January 20 2010 6:49 PM

"Those who fail to plan, plan to fail"

by Houston K.  at January 20 2010 6:49 PM

"Those who fail to plan, plan to fail"

by jlo  at January 20 2010 1:47 PM

i understand the budget table. my problem is we don't get paid with a lupm sum every month. how do you decide what to pay and save with each paycheck?

by Ramiro  at January 17 2010 7:17 PM

My wife and I will be starting FCU classes this week. Im so excited and driven to become debt free. I have been using Microsoft Money for years and have budgeted pretty well but we still live check to check. We are 75,000 in debt and are currently attending school. I will be fnishing my graduate program in May 2011 so that is added stress that I feel. I have already payed off a 1800.00 credit card this month which felt great. Eventhough I know we will be sacrificing a lot in order to become debt free I am willing to do so. This will benefit not only myself but my wife and 4 year old daughter as well.

by Melanie  at January 15 2010 8:49 AM

Hoping someone can advise me because I haven’t found anything on this in Dave’s books – Before stating the plan I was able to get myself out of the “living paycheck-to-paycheck” cycle. Now, the paychecks that came in December are being used to fund all of January’s expenses. The paychecks coming in January are being “held” to fund February’s expenses. Is this wrong? I’m on BS2 with a goal to be finished by 12/31/10. If I put a month’s salary towards my snowball I could be finished by the fall. Thanks for your input!

by Dawna  at January 11 2010 1:27 PM

I'm getting ready to start the whole Dave Ramsey program I'm very excited, I think I finally have my husband convinced. We have been married for 23 years and we are in over our heads with medical debt and being stupid with bank loans. Please keep us in your prayers.

by Sarah Crawford  at January 07 2010 3:48 PM

Hello, I am new to my total money make over and I need some advice from those of you that are more experienced. I live in Texas and need help with Credit report issues. Some of the ladies here at work told me that if you do not contact the creditor and it has been more than 4 years (in Texas) that you can dispute the debt on your report and/r it will roll off. Dave says that it will not roll off but I don't recall his advice on disputing it. I was recently married in October and when I married my husband I incurred his debt as well. So now that I am getting ready to start my debt snowball, I ran a credit report and started calling creditors to find out full amounts and what the charges were from. Some dated back to 2004 and I am pretty sure my husband has had no contact with them in the said 4 year period. So should I dispute them or do the hard thing and include them in my snowball. Please advise.

by Ramesh Kumar  at January 01 2010 5:14 PM

I have read the total money make over. It's really works only if you follow the system. Thankyou Dave.

by Deirdre  at December 31 2009 10:42 AM

I'm tired of being in debt. I am a divorcee raising two children with one graduating this May from high school and the other in three years.I live in a small college town. Work is limited here. I'm in $21,000 in debt no money for my child to go to college. I only make 14,000 a year. The problem is I am disable and no one want a person that have a chonic disease. What can I do to get out of debt.

by Michele  at December 29 2009 11:51 PM

I tried the Gazelle Budget Lite with remaining 0 dollars but it still says I have not created a zero-based budget.

by Steve  at December 23 2009 6:21 PM

Thank you Dave we have paid off 80,000 in 24 months 42,000 to go. 12 more months and we will definitely do the scream you wont even need the phone to hear us. Please pray for our family to stay focused. And also for our small group that we just started that we can be good examples to help our members get their life back.

by gail  at December 23 2009 10:33 AM

Nathan ... be careful on the traveler's checks. A friend just returned from Germany and France where American Express travelers checks were not accepted.

by Drew  at December 19 2009 9:01 PM

Nathan- Check with your bank about using your debit card. I lived and worked overseas for a year for a Christian non-profit and used my debit card on occasion. The credit union I used automatically calculated all the exchange rates when I used the card. That would be my suggestion, but see what your bank/CU says.

by Evan H.  at December 11 2009 4:26 PM

Marie, Of the three things you listed, you might be able to cut out the massage and pedicure/manicure. It might take more time, but you can probably give yourself a pedicure and manicure and save a significant amount of money. With the snowball, try to find as much extra money from your budget as possible. Remember that the more you pay down on your debts, the less interest you will be paying which will really get the ball rolling! Good luck with your snowball.

by Marie  at December 07 2009 3:15 PM

I need advice on working my debt snowball. What exactly do I need to give up, in order to work this correctly? I currently budget money for hair cuts/color, massage, pedicure/manicure. I've cut these way back but do I need to eliminate some of these items I consider a necessity?

by Lindsay  at December 07 2009 11:20 AM

Dave's plan does work. It is not always easy and you will probably even cry along the way. I have! There will be tears of pain and tears of happiness. My husband and I have been doing this program for about 2 years now and yes, we still mess up if we lose focus. Our children even budget their money (4 and 9 yrs old). Now is a good time to start the program. We began in Feb 2008 (right at tax return time) and that was a kick start for us. We paid off 2 credit cards ($5000 total), my car ($1000), furniture ($800) and built ($2000 in our emergency fund. Once you get your budget down on paper you truely notice that you spend a lot of money on silly things. We saved up enough money to pay cash for a tractor in April 2009. We are still saving and paying cash for items! Cash for Christmas gifts!WOW! We still have one vehicle payment and hope to have it paid for early and live in a new home that we built with our own hands. Once the vehicle is paid for we will work on college for our children. My husband is the finacial advisor for our church and he has facilitated the FPU there. We have been blessed!

by Nathan  at December 06 2009 8:18 PM

On Baby Step 3, almost to 4, no credit cards for a year now. I have to travel to U.A.E. in Feb, and all travel advisories say to take travelers checks or credit cards instead of cash. What is the best plan???

by Kim Shea  at November 30 2009 9:51 AM

As stated in a Military Financial Planning Guide...a budget is a systematic way of going into debt! Kim Shea, MSgt, USAF Ret.

by Brenda  at November 14 2009 10:57 PM

Just getting started. I have my budget in place and have payed off two small bills. I am excited and plan to pay off 25000 in two years. Thanks Dave. The first time things have looked up in a long time.

by Quinn  at October 29 2009 10:22 PM

I'm 17, and I make sure that I budget and save out of every pay check. It is usually complicated to get my friends to follow in my path, but come on! It REALLY works!

by danielle  at October 28 2009 10:19 AM

Tears came to my eyes today when I did my budget and I had a $285 surplus after I accounted for everything. I love telling my money what to do!

by Tim  at October 19 2009 8:55 PM

Once we faced our finances head-on, budgeting has allowed us to see & plan where our money is going. I don't have to worry about my debit card being declined because I thought we had enough to cover it. Our budget tells us exactly how much we can spend & no more, with the benefit of actually seeing how much extra we can apply towards knocking off that evil debt.

by Chris  at October 08 2009 3:45 PM

Started Dave's plan in January, and I have paid off almost $15k in debt in 9 months with only 1 income! This plan works and it is too easy to not do.

by Maggie  at October 07 2009 8:23 AM

My husband has been out of work for two months now and it looks like it might be a long stretch of unemployment. The good part is that we started our TMMO in 2005, and paid off over $55,000 in credit cards and car loans. We have a good emergency fund (although I hate to have to dip into it), and prior to his layoff we were living on his paycheck. Mine went for savings and paying extra on the mortgage. I've had to cut back on contributing to retirement, but because we were prepared, life isn't so bad. Putting money in the envelopes works and even now we still have our blow money(although reduced), so I am not feeling deprived.

by Noel  at October 01 2009 8:49 AM

Today is the first day in my 12 years of driving that I have paid for my state inspection sticker on the day that it expired, and not 6 months later. Why? Because we BUDGETED for it! It's amazing that I didn't panic and flip out over "$68.00? How do they expect me to come up with $68.00?" Ahhh... Peace of mind. Come relax with me! It's great!

by Adam  at September 24 2009 7:16 PM

Dave's plan is so simple that it will be the hardest thing you do. You are going to have to change you. Get your budget and your emergency fund. Start the snowball. We have so far paid off $14K in 10 months, having about $13K to go. Don't let Murphy or anyone discourage you; seeing the results are incredible. What makes me sick is the $3K I am now sending Chase, BOA and AE to get out, when I could be investing it. But the light at the end of the tunnel keeps getting bigger. Quicken says according to current salaries, I can get out of debt, put 2 kids through college, buy a $200K house in 2013, and retire in 29 yrs with $2.3million in investments. That is the result of Dave's plan. Thank you, Dave Ramsey.

by Teresa Nielson  at September 14 2009 5:19 PM

Don't get discouraged. Keep going. Dave's plan works. Live like no one else so you can live like no one else. Do a monthly budget along with getting your $1000.00 emergency fund.

by JillsFavorites  at August 28 2009 10:39 AM

Don't forget to budget even when you do have a good income... this is the time I pay the biggest "stupid tax".

by ron  at July 27 2009 4:32 PM

Always good to have a plan!