Dave Ramsey’s New House

Cool Springs TN ^ | October 11, 2010 | Cool Springs Admin

[CSM]

Anyone that has been in Cool Springs TN lately, has most likely seen Dave Ramsey

[LADY J]

"Looks like the Mod fixed my link problem...."

Thank you.

[skinndogNN]

And one more thing, live below your means.

[day10]

Very true. As a guy who has led this class at my church about 6 times now, I can tell you that you would be shocked at the number of people which don’t get this concept. You would probably be shocked at the number of people who have no idea how to balance their checkbook.

Dave’s concepts are simple and they work. I have seen it in both my case and with students who take the class and apply it.

[lacrew]

Dave must like fireplaces. I count 5 chimneys.

[Chickensoup]

I get double pinged too

[AdamBomb]

I happen to know the dope who recently married Dave Ramsey’s daughter.. Guy is a high school football coach and seems like he has had one too many concussions during his own playing days.

Talk about winning the lottery.....this guy was destined for a trailer park.

[wardaddy]

I agree with glyptol...even though he's a bit harsh.

I admire Dave's Christian faith but his show is just this simple schtick about pay off debt and don't spend money and never ever leverage.

Not leveraging in business is basically impossible for an owner.

He's just comes across as a guru to folks with little hope or poor discipline and shucks it up a bit for me. His success is a lightning strike successful as a radio host and he's preaching to hourly workers or salaried folks who've overspent.

The Osteen of finance.

and unlike most here I live in the same market...I drive by his home daily though I did not know it was his or that the other was LeAnne’s

Rimes used to live on Hillsboro not far from where I used to live next door to where Clay Jackson hosted Bush in 2004 and we freeped the protesters....back when I lived in town...Hillsboro Pike and Tyne Blvd.

That area of Williamson county to the east of Cool Springs has seen the biggest devaluation in our area...it's too close to office and commercial...and overbuilt since Dave bought it

For all Dave's preaching and he goes and builds a 13,000 sq foot home for 8-9 million just seems out of character.

Homes are not really investments unless you are extremely lucky or a builder who sells the home upon completion.

Homes are lifestyles.

No one needs that big a home...3-4000 feet will serve even the largest family baring FLDS...it's his choice but again it's a lifestyle and it's showy...and nouveau to be honest

just seems showy and tacky and a poor investment

and does not speak well for the King of Frugality

now had he bought 1000 acres in metro Nashville with an upside and a nice but less ostentatious house then i could have seen that as rich but fitting his preaching as looking at the long term but this palace he has will likely never appreciate...it will be a white elephant like most homes like that...now had he built a nice crib on Belle Meade Blvd in character with other tony homes there then in 100 years it would be a landmark...

I don't have a special beef with him but he just has that TV preacher quality I ain't crazy about even though I think he is genuine in his faith...it's his practice I see as thin

Dave's net worth is around 50 million according to folks who keep up with such stuff. He put around 10 million in his home plus furnishings...another million I'd guess. His property taxes are...guessing here...30,000 a year.

Just doesn't really live up to his frugality lessons

I don't care how folks spend their cash but if you preach..and I do mean literally preach one way then this just seems pushing the boundaries of taste for someone like him.

[CSM]

“Dave’s net worth is around 50 million according to folks who keep up with such stuff. He put around 10 million in his home plus furnishings...another million I’d guess. His property taxes are...guessing here...30,000 a year.

Just doesn’t really live up to his frugality lessons”

You completely miss his message. Yes, he teaches frugality....while one is cleaning up debt and building wealth. Then when you achieve that he also teaches that you need to enjoy the fruits of your labor and sacrifices. In fact, one of the more important lessons he discusses is how to learn to spend again and how much you can enjoy giving when you have a very good foundation.

His entire saying is to live like no one else (be frugal) so that some day you can LIVE like no one else (enjoy the fruits.)

[Martin Tell]

Like Wardaddy, I live in the Nashville area and I actually work at Cool Springs. I can see this Xanadu from my office.

Although I don't know Dave personally, I have heard stories, perhaps driven by envy, that he is not completely aligned with his radio persona.

My wife is a Dave fan, so I certainly don't voice any misgivings. It's not hard to predict what he will say, so the show gets old after a while. Still, I agree with most of what he says - I have zero debt, including no mortgage, but I did not need to hear that from a radio guy.

And I don't really get the animosity to credit cards. Just pay off the whole balance every month, no problems!

[CSM]

I would find those stories to be pretty hard to believe. What he teaches is very simple and not difficult to be aligned with. Given that simplicity, a deviation would be to much of a risk to his “brand,” which is nothing more than his name and reputation.

I’d wager that most of those stories are being told by folks that are somehow connected to a product or service that benefits from debt/credit.

[Stegall Tx]

And I don't really get the animosity to credit cards. Just pay off the whole balance every month, no problems!

Some of us are just flat stupid. I include myself in that group. I was raised by someone who had no choice but to be extremely frugal and who exhibited the proper behavior with credit that you explain.

But for some reason, it didn't stick. I knew what the problem was, I knew what I had to do to fix the problem, but for some reason I just would not do it.

Then, I started listening to Dave. On a Sunday afternoon, the station out of Amarillo was rebroadcasting one of his shows from the week and it was either listen to him or sports. On that day, he talked to a woman whose brother lived in her home with her family. Poor, poor Sindney never could get a break. He would work for a few days and the boss would do something that forced him to quit. Or he would get sick and the boss wouldn't be understanding.

In about three or four minutes, Dave diagnosed Sidney's real problem ... "He's lazy."

Sister dear didn't like it, but Dave stuck by his guns and explained the real problem was that Sidney didn't have any REAL PROBLEMS. He had her to fall back on. If he had to make it on his own without the support of others, then he would have to go to work every day, he would have to put up with the boss or have to figure out a way to work for himself. He would be a self-supporting man rather than a little boy living off his sister and her family.

That one show really impressed me. It impressed me enough to assess my situation and I was shocked. It took the better part of a decade, but I was finally able to reorient myself and get sorted out.

I had all the right information. I had all the right tools. I had seen the proper behavior modeled over a lifetime. I had a fantastic job with a great salary. I just didn't have the motivation.

Dave provided that motivation.

As for the credit card situation, I have proven to myself four different times that I do not have the discipline to pay them off every month. Something always comes up that takes priority. There is something about the ease of using the credit card that somehow blinds me to the danger. I've paid them all off and sworn that I will never let them build up a balance FOUR TIMES in my life.

As I said at the beginning, some of us are just stupid. Those of you who have the discipline to carry credit cards and pay them off every month have my respect and deserve it. But I suspect those of us who are too stupid to follow the tried-and-true advice of "pay the balance every month" outnumber you 10,000 to 1. At least.

[Martin Tell]

Good story, and I sincerely appreciate the post.

I don't want to come off as some braggart/I-have-super-willpower guy. For some reason I have never had a problem paying all my bills on time and in full, but when it comes to late night snacks...

[Fledermaus]

I haven’t seen the house. Or I have and didn’t know or care it was his.

I agree about his credit card rants. Stupid.

I also don’t like his stance on buying or leasing cars. He talks like we all should buy used and I ask, “okay, then once all those are sold where do we get more?”

Or he says go out and buy some $2K used car. Really? At that price you’ll be lucky it has an engine or you’ll have to spend that a year just keeping it running.

[Martin Tell]

Good points, and I've also heard it said that if everyone followed his principles the economy would collapse.

To be fair, I once heard him respond to that along the lines of, no danger of that since not that many people will ever avoid debt.

[Altariel]

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