Dollars & Uncommon Sense

I have tried to follow the Dave Ramsey plan while dragging my better half along kicking and screaming. He says he doesn't actually hate Dave Ramsey, but "he acts like he has the answer to every situation and he doesn't."  Interesting.

In the beginning, when my husband asked me to be in control of the finances, I said no way. I have walked that path before and I just end up acting like a mother.  Some one asks for money, I say we don't have any, then they pout.  I am not doing that again.  He said, it will be.different.  :sigh:  I agreed only if we picked a plan other then mine and we both followed it.  So DR it was. Now Dave is an idiot.  LOL. Poor guy - he isn't even here to defend himself.

I happened to get a book about money which I read but didn't finish.  My son Mansel finished it first actually. So after talking to him about it, I decided to read it. Good stuff manerd.  Mr. Steve Repak, CFP wrote this book to the common man.  (ww.repakfs.com)  He too agrees that one should build an emergency savings, then start to pay off any debt. His secret amount is $1500.  We are at $1000 because until recently we were DR fans.

I underlined this statement.  "I am just telling you that the only way that you will ever have more money is by spending less. You will never learn how to spend less unless you learn how to give first."  I wonder if he has read the Bible.  Because that sentence sounds very Biblical.

Unlike DR he doesn't think it is very realistic to ask you to pay 100% cash for a new car.  Yet he does have a good suggestion, in my opinion. Find a car you like, figure out what the payments will be.  Practice making car paymemts for a year by placing them into a car savings account. After you have made monthly payments for one year, go back and find the same model, which will now be one year old, so it will cost less, and you will have a nice down payment. And you will know you can make the payments, because you have been for the last year. I think I will tell my kids to make double payments to themselves for the first year, because not only will they have a payment, but gas, and insurance + a car payment.  So an even nicer down payment and they will be used to the extra expense as well as the payment.

Let's see. . .  What else did I underline? Oh - I like the idea of giving ourselves 10% in savings each month.  Right now - we do nothing.  Ack!!  I hate that. I am working evenings right now to pay off debt. After this payment, that money will go into savings. I would like to not have 2 jobs. Home educating the kiddos is nearly a full time job. Tonight we were still doing school at 8:00.

I have asked Dan to read this book. It is good. (Very similar to DR - but don't tell Dan that, He wouldn't actually know, since he didn't read the DR plan book).  LOL