📈 Are you on track with the Baby Steps? Get a Free Personalized Plan Dave Ramsey and Rachel Cruze answer your questions and discuss: "How do I buy a car in the midst of a divorce? " "How do I pay off my $1.8 million of debt?" "What do you think about companies displaying "tariff costs" on their prices? " "How do I get my girlfriend and I on the same page financially?" "Our mortgage broker won't put me on the mortgage because I don't have any credit" "I'm behind on my bills, how do I get out of $35k of debt?". Next Steps: ✅ Help us make the show better by taking this short survey! 📞 Have a question for the show? Call 888-825-5225 weekdays from 2–5 p.m. ET or send us an email. 📱 Watch the full episode for free in the Ramsey Network app. 💰 Hurry—Your chance to win $5k is almost over! Enter the Ramsey Cash Giveaway today! 🏠 Get organized and prepared to buy or sell a home. 💵 Start your free budget today. Download the EveryDollar app! Connect with our Sponsors: Stop paying more and start shopping smarter at Aldi Get 10% off your first month of BetterHelp Go to Boost Mobile to switch today! Learn more about Christian Healthcare Ministries Get started today with Churchill Mortgage Get 20% off when you join DeleteMe Go to FAIRWINDS Credit Union for an exclusive account bundle! Save 15% on your first Field of Greens order with code RAMSEY Find top Health Insurance Plans at Health Trust Financial To find out more about student loan refinancing, check out Laurel Road Visit NetSuite today to learn more Use promo code RAMSEY for 18% off at The Nokbox Learn more about Timothy Plan Get started with YRefy or call 844-2-RAMSEY Visit Zander Insurance for your free instant quote today! Explore more from Ramsey Network: 💸 The Ramsey Show Highlights 🧠 The Dr. John Delony Show 🍸 Smart Money Happy Hour 💡 The Rachel Cruze Show 💰 George Kamel 🪑 Front Row Seat with Ken Coleman 📈 EntreLeadership Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: How do I buy a car during a divorce?
The problem is, I don't know what my soon-to-be ex did with the finances. She split up everything, left me with almost nothing. My lawyer's been trying to work on finding that out, but she's not working with a lawyer. So I just need to know the best way to do this. If we combined everything, we have the money to do that.
But she basically has told me to either get a car loan, which I don't like doing because we found I got out of debt. But I just need to know the best way to approach this without having to go out.
How long have you been separated, Nathan?
About five or six months.
And where has your paycheck been going, son?
Oh, I have my own new bank account. Oh, how much is in that? Yeah. Right now, about $2,000 because I'm paying for lawyer fees are really taking a good chunk of my money right now. Okay.
And you're saying that you guys had a combined savings.
We probably had a combined about $50,000 cash available.
Okay.
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Chapter 2: What should I do if I have $1.8 million in debt?
And she's probably like, well, yeah, I think this is my money. And I'm having a baby, so I get to keep it. No, that's not how it works, darling. So, you know, she's got nobody there talking sense into her. And she may be getting her best advice from her friend on Instagram, which is, you know, probably not a good idea.
We don't know.
Probably not a good idea. I'm just saying. Like, for sure, not a good idea. This is The Ramsey Show. you know one of the first things i discovered working in the financial world is how absolutely devastating it is when the breadwinner of a family dies and there's too little life insurance, or none at all.
Grieving families are suddenly left behind scrambling to pay bills and trying to make ends meet. I also discovered that there are a lot of rip-offs in the life insurance world, like that whole life crap posing as an investment opportunity. What you need is level-term life insurance, usually 10 to 12 times your income, which is the smartest, most affordable way to protect your family.
The key is finding an independent broker who represents a ton of companies We'll be right back. so you know they'll be there when you need them. Zander is the real deal, and that's why they've handled all my personal insurance for over 25 years. I trust them, and you can too. Visit Zander.com for instant online quotes or for a more personal touch. Give them a call at 800-356-4282.
Mindy is in Canada. Hi, Mindy. How are you? Hi, I'm good. How are you? Better than I deserve. What's up? I love that line.
Okay, I'll try to make this brief. I am 35, married with a kid and a second on the way. I have $1.8 million in debt total.
Good Lord.
Yeah. Does that include your home? I live in Montreal, which is the third most expensive city in Canada. And I work as a nurse, which is the cheapest paid in the whole of Canada.
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Chapter 3: How can couples align on financial spending?
Okay.
We got them because we would be saving $500 in gas per car.
Yeah, it makes a difference when you're $2 million in debt. That's a big deal. Yeah. Not! Okay. All right. Oh, God. All right, so how can we help, hon?
Well, I had my aha moment when I saw $22,000 going out in one month after doing a budget. and I don't know what exactly to do. I tried to get my wife on board. She says she'll get rid of everything besides for the house and the cars. I cut out everything from potato chips to haircuts, literally anything I could to curb the debt, curb the expenses.
And I wish I could do more jobs a day, but my doctor says that because I'm bipolar, I need to have a healthy work-life balance. and my wife is going on maternity leave in 12 weeks.
How much of her salary is the 120?
She makes about 66.
So half of it. Is that paid for, paid maternity leave?
She gets 70% paid. Okay. For how long? For a year. Okay.
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Chapter 4: What are the implications of tariffs on pricing?
And the biggest reason is, is there's not a lot of actual tariffs have hit the shores of the United States yet.
And when they do, I mean, the truth is small businesses, we're going to feel it. I mean, any business, but especially, I mean, even with some of our stuff, you know what I mean? Like you just talked to like, I mean, there is a level.
No, almost all of our stuff is not done overseas. Some of the things I think it is. We've got a handful of things that are, but I mean, like your wallets are done in India.
Yeah, but the truth is it does affect small business. And so you may see that. Like that's.
Yeah, if the cost of that wallet that we're doing in India doubles because of tariffs, we'll probably put that on the website. We'll probably put it out there for you. But so far it has not, by the way, okay? It's a lot of saber rattling, as they say in negotiating, so far. And, boy, we have a chief saber rattler right now, no question about that. All right, Jason is in Kansas City.
Hey, Jason, what's up?
Hey, guys, thanks for taking my call.
Sure. How can we help?
Hey, real quick, I just feel stupid for asking it, but I'm thinking about quitting my job I've been doing for about 20 years and just doing something totally different. Okay. Am I dumb for wanting to do something that's better paying?
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Chapter 5: How do I manage debt without sacrificing quality of life?
So I work an hourly construction job, and I make somewhere between $60 and $70 a year. I also do have a side business that I'm starting to finally see some...
some income from there too it's not consistent uh because it's still in the early phases you seem like such a level-headed wise smart young guy until we start talking about her and then suddenly like all of your common sense left Yeah. I mean, because you're sitting here explaining to me something that's absolutely asinine.
And you, I mean, you're the kind of guy that normally would have just said, wait a minute, just give me the card back. This doesn't work. Why haven't you done that?
So it's not that I haven't. It's that I don't mind.
Take the card back. Tonight. Yeah. This is going nowhere good.
Todd, the problem is you guys are acting like you're a married couple. You know what I mean? You're acting like, oh yeah, we are one in our lives and we're doing this life together. No, you're not. Financially, this is not a combined venture.
You gave your roommate a credit card and your roommate has a spending problem. Yeah. That's what I'm saying. And that's what Rachel's saying. Now, if you're her husband... Now we got a different discussion. Now we're in marriage counseling and we get on the same page. And honey, we can't spend money like we're in Congress. And we start having these discussions.
OK, but she's not your wife, but you just gave your room. I mean, just change it. Pretend like you weren't sleeping with her and it was just your roommate. And you just gave your buddy who's living down the hall in another bedroom your card. And then he went hog wild at freaking Target. You know, you'd be going, no.
Or Bass Pro. Yeah, Bass Pro.
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Chapter 6: What steps should I take if my partner has a spending problem?
Okay, wherever. I don't care. But, I mean, you'd be going, man, that was a bad move. I want my card back. Right? Because that's the situation you're in.
Almost $2,000 a month, Todd. That's a lot. It's not like you're like, oh, gosh, she spent $50.
Yeah, it was $1,700 last month, and I said something then. And we got an argument, and then it was $19 this month.
Okay, well, let me help you with this. It's going the wrong way. Yeah.
I guess my problem is I see so many characteristics of her that are marriage material, and so I try to overlook this problem and try and compromise and make it work. But every time I say something, we get an argument.
No, you have to take the card back, and then we have to start the relationship over. and the relationship starts with the two of us have to get on the same page about how we are going to handle money before we talk about marriage. And a real good way to do that is not be living together because when you're living together, you're trying to work.
You're trying to play like you're married, but you're not. It's like one foot in the boat, one knot, and all you do is get wet in this lake. I mean, the boat leaves, and there you go. So, you know, and so it's just a problem. So, and... I don't think you're – guys, I don't think you two – you're not describing a situation where you're ready to get married. Yeah. So –
I'm coming to.
Yeah. And know this, Todd, you know, I'm sure she does have marriage material and all of that. And not that certain subjects can't be agreed upon and seeing shared values and actually working towards reconciliation of us actually seeing life the same way. But there's like big issues that create that that have been studied and shown that cause divorce and money is always in that top three.
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Chapter 7: How can I create urgency in financial discussions?
Until I learn enough about it to figure out how to somehow game this system because it's an unreasonable – I'm with you. Not counting your income is unreasonable.
Yeah, yeah.
And so I'm not going to accept an unreasonable answer because it's not logical. The point is your income is there and it can be used to pay the freaking bill. So the mortgage company is not not counting that. And for some reason or another is just bureaucratic bullcrap.
Yeah.
So I'm going to find some way to work around it. I will tell you another. Try Churchill. And if you can't get this figured out with them, you probably can. I think they'll solve it. But the other thing you can do is go to someone like Fairwinds Credit Union, one of our other advertisers, and they portfolio the loans, meaning they keep the loan in-house.
And if they're going to keep the loan in-house, that means they make up the rules. They can just look at it and decide, we're going to count it. Because this guy's reliable. We're going to do manual underwriting on him. And we're going to look at her credit score. And we're going to count it. And they can just decide to do that.
Because what they're trying to do is to meet what's called conforming lending guidelines so they can resell the loan. Brokers don't keep the loans. They resell the loan. And in order for the loan to be marketable when they resell it, it has to meet these guidelines. And your guy can't figure out how to meet the guidelines. in your situation.
Churchill may be able to figure it out, but if neither one of them can, go to a place that portfolios, meaning they keep the loan, they're not selling the loan. So whatever guidelines they're comfortable with, they can just do it because the loan's going to be on the books at the credit union.
Yeah, that's a great point.
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