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The Ramsey Show

“I’m $147k In Debt And Only Make $1,500 A Month”

20 Nov 2025

Transcription

Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?

4.84 - 32.876 Rachel Cruze

Brought to you by the EveryDollar app. Start budgeting for free today. Normal is broken. Common sense is weird. So we're here to help you transform your life from the Ramsey Network in the Fairwinds Credit Union Studio. This is The Ramsey Show. And I'm Rachel Cruz hosting this hour with Jade Warshaw. And we're answering your questions. So give us a call at 888-825-5225.

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33.336 - 56.498 Rachel Cruze

And we'll be talking about your life, your money, career relationships, anything and everything. We are here for you. so let's start off in Boston with Miguel hi welcome to the show hey how's it going we're doing well how can we help today so today I wanted to ask so I have a business and I'm

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56.933 - 76.407 Les

I'm contemplating on what I should do next because I'm also $147,000 in debt, and that's including credit cards, student loans, and car payment. Okay. So I want to know if I should sell a business for what I think I give value for and then start fresh and use that lump sum of money to attack the debt.

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77.609 - 78.891 Unknown

What kind of business are you in?

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80.407 - 82.891 Les

It's a printing business, so merchandise.

83.612 - 91.445 Unknown

What would cause you to sell the business versus using profit from the business to pay down the debt?

94.79 - 106.228 Les

I think it's just because I'll collect a lump sum of money and the business right now is kind of fluctuating. It's up and down. And I'm also alone in it, so it's a lot of my time.

107.356 - 115.488 Rachel Cruze

If you didn't have debt, Miguel, would you stay in this business? Or would you still want out?

115.508 - 119.634 Les

Yeah. You would stay in? I'll potentially stay in the business, yeah.

Chapter 2: What financial challenges does Miguel face with his business?

170.29 - 170.911 Les

No, I'm single.

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171.131 - 174.015 Rachel Cruze

You're single. How are you living off of $1,500 a month?

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177.739 - 179.281 Les

Just making it happen, honestly.

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179.301 - 181.284 Unknown

But what's your rent, though? Like, real numbers.

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183.386 - 186.25 Les

I pay studio. It's about $850. Mm-hmm.

186.972 - 188.354 Unknown

What else? Car?

189.997 - 190.999 Les

Car? Yeah, 450.

191.019 - 192.201 Unknown

And then 450.

192.442 - 193.163 Les

Okay.

Chapter 3: Should Miguel sell his business to pay off debt?

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194.726 - 200.596 Unknown

And then utilities, I guess that's put in with the rent. And then just you're scrapping on food. No insurance.

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0

202.841 - 203.682 Unknown

Do you have insurance?

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205.4 - 209.925 Les

Health insurance? My cards, no, no, no, no health insurance.

210.305 - 232.808 Unknown

Yeah, so you're not on a living wage right now. And so while I think it's cool to have a printing business, it eats like a part-time side hustle when we look at the income that it's bringing. So I would be looking, as you're working this, I'd be looking for a full-time job. What are your skills? What have you done in the past before you did this business?

234.931 - 240.818 Les

I technically just hopped out of school and then saved money and then started this business.

240.838 - 242.32 Rachel Cruze

Yeah. How many hours a week?

242.36 - 243.161 Les

I've never really.

Chapter 4: How does Miguel manage living on $1,500 a month?

581.575 - 588.75 Rachel Cruze

She's concerned about how she's going to invest all this money properly and not mess this up. Or she's concerned how she's going to eat tomorrow. That's exactly right. These are the two options.

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588.97 - 599.612 Jade Warshaw

Take care of your dadgum family, man. Term life insurance can replace income, pay off debts, cover funeral expenses, so your family can actually have the opportunity to just be sad. Yeah. To just miss you.

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599.752 - 649.133 Rachel Cruze

That's exactly what it's supposed to be. It's saying I love you to your family. Term life insurance. Jeff Zander and the team at Zander Insurance makes it easy and affordable. I've used them personally for 25 years. They're the only people I trust. Go to Zander.com or call 800-356-4282. Up next, we have Cody in Roanoke, Virginia. Hi, Cody. Welcome to the show. Hey. Hi, how are you doing?

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650.275 - 654.041 Rachel Cruze

I'm hanging in there. Well, good. We are too. How can we help today?

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655.363 - 692.154 Les

Well, so I got a little bit of a financial problem as well as marriage problem. And It's becoming a strain more so with the marriage because of the financial problem. We recently had gotten married about five years ago. My wife and I have had three kids in the last five years. My youngest kid, he was put in the ICU, and long story short, we have a bunch of medical debt.

692.594 - 720.947 Les

It's about $35,000 worth, and I just can't keep up. I just recently, in the last couple years, we've been on Medicaid, but I just recently got a raise working, which is good, but it's like, The more income I come in, the more my wife likes to spend. I'm the saver. I like to say no and get bills paid.

721.768 - 729.482 Les

We currently have been taking care of some of the medical bills by credit card, which recently I figured out was a no-no.

729.682 - 730.063 Unknown

Yeah.

730.567 - 735.093 Les

So I have seven grand left in medical debt. We have $6,000.

Chapter 5: What advice do Rachel and Jade give Miguel about his future?

1418.663 - 1420.825 Unknown

So the total is eight grand.

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1421.868 - 1445.867 Les

for the car okay my friend owns it owned it and he told me i can pay him 400 a month okay that's fine i make roughly 850 dollars bi-weekly okay and the part that's getting me is the insurance my insurance for just liability a month because of my age is about 700 and

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1446.421 - 1454.713 Les

Having to pay all of that on my own, buying a used car, I also have to pay a title tax because we switched it over to my mother's name. And that's about another $700.

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1454.793 - 1457.357 Unknown

A month? No, just in one time.

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1458.198 - 1458.92 Les

Just in one time.

1458.94 - 1461.664 Unknown

Okay. I was like, what? Okay, keep going.

1461.844 - 1474.723 Les

But I have to get it all done at once, which is kind of the hard part. And I have one or two literal repairs that are going to cost me a total of $350 before I can get a tag done.

1475.699 - 1483.93 Unknown

What would happen? So you haven't done it yet. You haven't done this deal yet. How are you getting around now?

1485.332 - 1498.489 Les

So I did buy the car. Oh, you did buy it. And I have an operating permit from Georgia without a tag for 30 days. But once that runs out, I'm going to be stuck without a tag and not being able to drive the car until I pay.

Chapter 6: How much debt did Christopher pay off and in what time frame?

3939.888 - 3943.076 Rachel Cruze

Okay, wonderful. All right, so how much debt have you paid off?

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3943.096 - 3943.998 Steve

$63,563.

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3944.299 - 3948.188 Rachel Cruze

Oh my gosh, to the T. What kind of debt was it?

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3948.488 - 3951.876 Steve

Mostly, it was actually 50-50, credit card debt and car debt.

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3952.057 - 3954.282 Rachel Cruze

Okay, credit cards and cars. How long did it take?

3954.302 - 3955.585 Steve

11 months.

3955.565 - 3957.187 Rachel Cruze

Wow, you were pedal to the metal.

3957.207 - 3957.547 Steve

Yes, you were.

Chapter 7: What sacrifices did Christopher make to pay off his debt?

3957.647 - 3958.828 Rachel Cruze

How much were you making during that time?

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3959.129 - 3968.819 Steve

I went from $72,000 to about $80,000, but with overtime, I'm set to close out about $110,000 this year. Oh, my gosh. I was working a lot. You were kicking it.

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3969.62 - 3972.203 Rachel Cruze

Yeah, and living on nothing. You just cut everything.

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3972.263 - 3976.507 Steve

That was it. Actually, I even sold the car. It was a brand new 2024.

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Chapter 8: What advice do Rachel and Jade give about handling debt and finances?

3976.587 - 3981.032 Steve

I was a little upside down, so I did the one thing you say is okay with debt. Yeah. Get a loan, pay. Yeah.

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3981.012 - 3983.017 Unknown

And so it's not a myth.

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3983.097 - 3994.784 Steve

It actually works. It worked out. It was tough. I ended up buying an 05 Lexus for about $6,000. Wow. And then a few months later, someone drove into it on my street.

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3995.065 - 3998.413 Unknown

Oh, shoot. Oh, look at that. That's good looking car. How much were you upside down?

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3998.393 - 4000.316 Steve

I was upside down about $4,000, $5,000.

4001.378 - 4007.69 Unknown

You are the poster child or poster man adult of what we teach. I love hearing it.

4007.71 - 4023.017 Steve

Oh, thank you. So when that one got hit, I actually got about $8,000 from the insurance company. And I was like, how cheap of a car can I get? So I bought another car for $2,000. Stop it. Put the rest of it towards my credit cards. Stop it. Look at you. That's it right there.

4022.997 - 4023.938 Rachel Cruze

Christopher.

4024.118 - 4028.544 Steve

And I said, you know what? That's what I'm driving right now. Let's keep working. And it works.

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