The Ramsey Show Highlights "She Needs To Get Her Head Wrapped Around How Dumb This Is"
Sep 5, 2025
A listener shares their journey through the challenges of paying off significant debts. The couple's debate heats up over the best strategy for tackling student loans, with one favoring lump sums and the other, monthly payments. Humor and frustration arise as they explore the irrationality of prioritizing expensive 401k loans over other debts. Their candid discussion emphasizes the importance of budgeting and communication in achieving financial harmony.
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Couple’s Debt Payoff Story
- The caller describes paying off $100,000 of debt and having two remaining debts: a $6,500 student loan and a $40,000 401(k) loan.
- He explains his wife prefers to keep the student loan because her employer gives $50 monthly, which she calls "free money."
Small Perks Can Extend Debt Decades
- Dave frames $50/month as $600/year and shows how that makes the apparent "free money" negligible against the total owed and time to pay.
- He highlights that clinging to small perks can extend repayment into decades and contradicts aggressive debt payoff progress.
Don't Keep Small Debt For Tiny Perks
- Dave Ramsey insists you should not keep a tiny loan for a small employer credit and pushes to pay it off immediately.
- He recommends confronting the math and eliminating the $6,500 student loan rather than accepting $50 monthly as justification to prolong debt.
