“We have 3 cars, 2 kids...and only 1 month of savings”

Ramit Sethi of I Will Teach You To Be Rich talks to Paul and Morgan, 37 and 33. In the second half of this live-recorded conversation, we dig deeper into their Conscious Spending Plan to uncover three cars (for two adults), sporadic debt management, high pet care costs, hidden student loans, and what seems like no way out from under it all.


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[ramitsethi]

Please remember: These are real people who had the courage to come on my podcast and ask for help. Would you be willing to come on this podcast and share every detail of your financial life? Feel free to leave comments based on what you think, but remember that we are here to help in a supportive way, not to demean and criticize.

[phillips]

Guys, Ramit continually reminds us that these are REAL PEOPLE coming on his show. They have the guts to put their finances on full display, which shows a level of commitment better than most people. Let’s try to be a little bit better with all the insulting comments…

[sarahgates]

Shout to Morgan and Paul. I appericate them for coming on here, being brave and sharing their shortcoming. Wish them well.

[mommywboyz]

Would love to see more long term follow up with the couples. Like 6 month-1yr later to see if they followed the plan and if so how it has changed their lives.

[Joce]

Ramit is such a contribution to us. People do not listen when friends and family advise someone that there is an emergency in their world. Alternatives for a solution elude them. Every option is met with resistance. Some people do not realize that even bankruptcy costs money. The best that I can offer is Ramit Sethi resources.

[mrs.quills]

Ramit calling out the bs that is childcare and related expenses falling on women 👏👏👏

Also, I really enjoyed this couple. They were honest and seem to have a good relationship. I wish them the best. They’ve just made a few financial hiccups, but I think as long as they communicate and share the burden equally it’ll be all good in the end.

[rhondavigil]

Sell the car.
Stop renovations.
Build an emergency fund.
Start investing 10-15% for retirement.
Cut spending on the day to day.
Once you have your emergency fund, start saving for renovations in cash.
So many issues that can easily be fixed with focus and purpose.

[EmpressoftheLibrary]

They should do the math to see whether it might be cheaper to rent a truck when they need one rather than keep the one they have. I used to work with a lady who lived in Manhattan. Given that she lived in a highly walkable neighborhood with easy access to public transportation and taxis, it made no sense for her to own a car. The few times a year she needed a car to drive somewhere outside the city she would rent one. It was way cheaper than owning in her circumstance. That may not be the case for this couple but it would be worth it to find out.

[LabradorsAreGoodDogs]

Ramit is the best in category in my opinion. Keep up the good work!

[LyricalTampon]

I almost cried when I saw Paul doing the "project manager hat on" exercise and just completely changing his whole orientation to the thing. What a powerful moment.

[sharaineroberts]

I really like how Ramit makes couples aware of their financial situation. Most importantly how he ask them to basically solve/find a way to improve their situation.

[jdp]

More mental load items I can think of when you have too many cars: Moving them for street cleaning, no room in the driveway for guests, there's too many to put in the garage so storms and hail are a worry. You have to clean them regularly because they're parked outside. A lot of people in my neighborhood have completely full 2-car garages and all their vehicles are parked outside. We all desperately need to simplify our lives, belongings, and finances.

[scoutinfashion]

I love listening and learning from couples that come on the show - but not all of us are in relationships and as a single person, I’d love to hear from my fellow single folks on the show if possible. Thanks for all you do team ✨👏🏽

[DoodleBopHead]

Ramit, thank you for calling them out on the issue of separate versus combined finances. That’s an issue for so many couples on your show, but this is the first time I’ve noticed where you zeroed in on it. My wife and I (married almost 22 years) combined our finances right away and never looked back. It’s made life so much easier, and planning is so much more straightforward. It seems like the default for married couples now is to keep finances separate, and it just makes no sense to me.

[DonBrownII]

47:56 That was so fascinating how the light bulb just turned on for him at. that very moment. Kudos to him. I feel like a proud friend now. lol

[acceleration]

1. Get married
2. Combine your income
3. Combine all expenses
Be smart don’t slide into relationships just to settle. You live once do it well!

[rileyblanton]

5am still awake from anxiety. HELL YA MY LULLABY AND RELAXATION HAS COME. Thank you Ramit for your financial ASMR😂

[DMarrettTV]

Ramit did a great job at unlocking this conversation in a productive way

[Mr_NB]

I get wanting to go to the farmers market to buy food for the kids, but maybe for the next 18 months they go to Aldi or some other grocery store that has less selection but is also way cheaper.

Maybe grandparents help out with the kids more so that they can cut childcare costs

[davedixon]

I've been obsessed with getting out of debt and better managing my money in the last year or so, and I like to ping-pong between Ramit's cool calm discussions and Caleb Hammer's crazy guest bonanza. Different energies for sure, but I find they complement each other and inform my money management in different ways.