Comments on: The Simple Dollar Morning Roundup: Dave Ramsey Edition

By: boardmadd

boardmadd — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 22:15:51 +0000

Some may find dave Ramsey’s approach is very simplistic, but for many, simple is all they’ll ever need. Having done many of the steps he recommends (including paying off the house early) I am finding that the ability to invest long term and avoid debt is *very* easy now.

Ramsey makes it clear that he does not look to debt for anything, and does not suggest or recommend debt unless the options are overwhelming (he has encourages surfing credit card rates to get a better insterest rate or taking out a consolidation loan if it makes sense to do so, but his ultimate message is to kill off debt and sterr clear of it ever more).

He bends his stance on buying a primary residnece with a fixed rate 15 year mortgage that equals no more than 25% of your take home pay.

I agree that Ramsey’s message is consistent, and while he certainly pimps his live events and his products (and come on, what radio personality *doesn’t* pimp merch?!), for the most part, his advice is the same as when he first wrote Financial Peace, and has wavered very litle over the years. For many, that consistency is both refreshing and comforting.

By: Joseph Sangl

Joseph Sangl — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 15:08:59 +0000

Dave Ramsey is awesome!!! I highly recommend that folks read his books. If you were to only want to read one of his books, I would recommend Financial Peace, Revisited.

One thing I really like about Dave is the fact that he does not waver on subjects. He has laser-like focus. I love it!

By: John

John — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:53:33 +0000

I like that Dave Ramsey has helped so many people, and I like that he doesn’t usually spout misinformation like the majority of self-appointed financial “gurus” (although I agree that his math is a little off at time). I don’t like that he is so rabidly anti-debt. Debt is a tool that can be used wisely or abused, and it’s not somehow immoral to use debt to accomplish something important.

By: Jamin

Jamin — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 12:52:26 +0000

For me personally, “Total Money Makeover” completely changed the way I looked at personal finance. Even though a lot of the book is common sense he puts it together so well and is an excellent motivator. After read it I got right to work getting my emergency fund together, working out a budget, and starting that snowball effect. I wrote about how I use his advice and a simple spreadsheet to manage my money now in How to Manage Your Finances with a Spreadsheet.

Your readers might find it useful.

Thanks for the great post!

By: Bryan

Bryan — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 18:33:59 +0000

I think it’s important to understand Ramsey’s audience, many of whom got into debt by not understanding fully the ramifications of incurring that debt. They got into debt easily (e.g. without thinking) and Ramsey provides a way to get out easily (e.g. without thinking). The amount of money saved by choosing lowest balance vs. interest rates vs. ratios is irrelevant to them: it’s the ease of the program that is important.

Ultimately, it’s important to recognize that ANY accelerated debt-reduction is better than paying minimum payments for 80 years.

By: Laura

Laura — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 15:43:19 +0000

Thanks for the resources link. While I’m not a rabid fan of David ramsey, his basic principles is helpful. I’m still working on building my emergency fund and reading some of his article motivates me to continue.