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Good people dealing with money troubles and debt worries make this same mistake over and over. Unfortunately, it can cost millions of lost dollars in retirement savings. In this podcast, Steve Rhode from https://getoutofdebt.org and Damon Day from https://damonday.com talk about how to avoid this simple, crushing mistake that can ruin a future financial life.
We also discuss the best approach and mindset to putting financial problems behind you and expect the best outcome with less stress.
In this podcast, I talk about What Repaying Your Debt Will Cost You in Retirement – Calculator.
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Transcript
00:00:00.017 –> 00:00:10.567
Hey, you’re back listening to another debt free dudes podcast with myself, Steve Rhode and Damon Day DamonDay.com.
00:00:10.577 –> 00:00:18.417
I always feel that I need to spell that for people? Because I’m sure you’ve been called Everything Damian and a whole bunch of other things.
00:00:18.427 –> 00:00:26.327
Damon David. Yeah. Well my email, you know, is Damon@DamonDay.com.
00:00:26.337 –> 00:00:39.387
Right? And one time I was talking to somebody on the phone, I gave him the email and, and I said it and they had the email from before and they said, oh DamonDay.com.
00:00:39.397 –> 00:00:53.837
And I said, yeah, I was like, like my name, you know, and she said she goes, I thought it was something like the monday, like it was the monday and she’s like, I had no idea what it meant, but I was like, okay, whatever the monday.
00:00:54.387 –> 00:01:02.817
Hey, this podcast is specifically about one topic, you and I are just drives us crazy. We’re hot about it.
00:01:02.827 –> 00:01:12.547
The title for this podcast is don’t do anything about your debt until you listen to this or you will make a million dollar mistake.
00:01:12.557 –> 00:01:16.367
And the sad thing about that Damon is that’s not hyperbole.
00:01:16.377 –> 00:01:24.577
That’s truth. Yeah. And and really it just breaks down too, don’t do anything until you look at everything.
00:01:24.587 –> 00:01:28.217
That’s kind of the, the whole overarching idea of this podcast.
00:01:28.217 –> 00:01:33.617
I called you yesterday bitching about it and I just got so frustrated.
00:01:33.617 –> 00:01:47.627
Said we need to record a podcast that just tells people it’s okay to consider all of the options before you commit to anything and steve why what what was I doing when I got so mad that I called you about it?
00:01:48.021 –> 00:01:55.571
Oh you’re on facebook, you’re reading facebook posts, facebook facebook gets me hot and bothered all the time gets me very mad.
00:01:55.581 –> 00:02:05.401
I love it when people who don’t know what they’re doing, give advice to other people who are not experienced in dealing with their debt And it is the epitome of the blind leading the blind.
00:02:05.401 –> 00:02:16.241
I know they’re all well intentioned, you know, they’re politely repeating things that they’ve heard, but oh my God, how much that destroys lives? It amazes me.
00:02:16.431 –> 00:02:25.601
I see the same thing over and over because I belong to a lot of facebook groups. You know, getting out of debt groups and, and and all that, you know, all that stuff and I try to be helpful and provide advice.
00:02:25.611 –> 00:02:33.901
What always drives me crazy is, you know, somebody will come in, they’ll be in a tough situation financially and they’ll say something like I’m drowning over here.
00:02:33.901 –> 00:02:43.187
I need some advice. I’ve been trying to do the baby step Or whatever and be on a budget and you know, with the cost of food and the cost of gas.
00:02:43.187 –> 00:02:46.787
I just, I feel like I’m a failure and I’m working 80 hours a week,
00:02:46.797 –> 00:02:58.387
basically you can tell their life is not fun and they’ll say about how they’re having all this trouble and then all these well intentioned people will come in to comment that again, know nothing about,
00:02:58.403 –> 00:03:04.703
this person’s situation or what’s happening in their life or even how much debt they have or how much money they make. They know nothing about it.
00:03:04.773 –> 00:03:12.583
But they all kind of say the same thing. you know, hang in there, stick with it, you can do it, you know, you can do it.
00:03:13.913 –> 00:03:25.961
Yeah, it drives me nuts. And then I’ll go in the forum and, and again, I don’t know anything about the situation, but I can tell this person is hurting and they’re and they’re struggling to try to prioritize the debt and still live.
00:03:26.211 –> 00:03:30.141
And I’ll even say things like, well, I don’t know anything about your situation, but have you.
00:03:30.503 –> 00:03:38.993
Considered maybe even exploring bankruptcy to see if that might be a better solution for you or something aggressive like settlement or something like that.
00:03:39.003 –> 00:03:45.213
And I basically get attacked for having the nerve to even suggest bankruptcy.
00:03:45.223 –> 00:03:52.963
It just drives me crazy because all I’m suggesting is to take a look and understand an option.
00:03:52.963 –> 00:04:01.653
I’m not trying to promote bankruptcy or sell bankruptcy. Really, what I’m trying to do is say, hey, look, there’s never just one way to fix your finances.
00:04:01.663 –> 00:04:04.993
There’s always many, many ways to do it.
00:04:05.003 –> 00:04:12.733
And all I suggest is let’s take a step back and let’s look at the pros and cons of everything before you do anything and,
00:04:12.743 –> 00:04:20.423
people are just faced with every person that gives them advice seems to be this is the only way to do it because I say it’s the way to do it and that’s what you have to do.
00:04:20.583 –> 00:04:22.693
No matter what, It’s always the one way.
00:04:22.703 –> 00:04:27.093
Well, this graphic popped up on my site, but it must have been divine intervention.
00:04:27.103 –> 00:04:34.913
I was looking for something else. And this graphic pops up and it says, knowing what is true is essential for making good decisions.
00:04:34.923 –> 00:04:37.873
It is so applicable to what we’re talking about.
00:04:37.883 –> 00:04:45.813
Uh first off, I was asked a reader question this morning, the question was, how do I know if I have problem debt?
00:04:45.823 –> 00:04:59.493
Well, if you’re asking the question, then then you got a problem that that is because the first thing is, as I’ve said, ever since we’ve known each other debt is nothing more than math wrapped in emotion.
00:04:59.503 –> 00:05:06.453
And when people wake up or they can’t sleep in the middle of the night because their debt is freaking them out and they’re too anxious.
00:05:06.773 –> 00:05:18.193
The biggest mistake people make is not stepping back and taking a breath, they jump in and they look for the first magical solution from whoever they talk to.
00:05:18.493 –> 00:05:30.823
That makes it sound like no problem. The warning sign you should look for is if you’re talking to a debt relief salesperson, I don’t care if it’s debt settlement, credit counseling, debt validation.
00:05:30.833 –> 00:05:34.593
I don’t know, magic beanstalk letter if they tell you.
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Bankruptcy is the last resort. You should run away Now.
00:05:40.325 –> 00:05:44.715
Damon people don’t have to run out and file bankruptcy, do they? That’s not what we’re saying.
00:05:44.725 –> 00:05:52.555
No. All we’re saying is don’t be predisposed to say yes or no to some strategy.
00:05:52.555 –> 00:06:03.195
And even if it’s not a debt relief strategy, even if, you know the debt snowball and you know, you have to prioritize this, you have to get on a budget and give, you know, every dollar a job or whatever it is.
00:06:03.205 –> 00:06:08.315
Everybody seems to have their own way and maybe it’s because it’s something that they did that worked for them.
00:06:08.445 –> 00:06:14.055
But, but here’s the thing, there is not one way that works best for everybody.
00:06:14.065 –> 00:06:19.685
There isn’t, there’s just not for some people, the debt snowball is the perfect solution.
00:06:19.695 –> 00:06:24.315
Just prioritizing those debts and you’re going to really tighten the budget, We’re gonna get this little side hustle,
00:06:24.325 –> 00:06:36.005
and we’re gonna, you know, order the debts from the highest interest rates the lowest and we’re just gonna pay this off and that’s fine for them and comfortable for them and they feel good about that. And that’s a great solution for them.
00:06:36.305 –> 00:06:48.035
But then for other people wiping it out into bankruptcy and taking that extra savings, investing that money into retirement or whatever, you know, college for the kids or whatever it is, is going to be a better solution.
00:06:48.035 –> 00:06:57.745
So anytime you have somebody say, hey, I’ve got the best solution for you, especially if they don’t really know anything about your situation, that’s what kills me.
00:06:57.745 –> 00:07:04.255
If they don’t know anything about what you’re dealing with and what’s important to you. But they tell you they have a good solution for you.
00:07:04.565 –> 00:07:10.985
They don’t, they have a good solution that may be either worked for them or they’re trying to make a commission on to sell you.
00:07:10.995 –> 00:07:14.095
It doesn’t necessarily apply to you.
00:07:14.105 –> 00:07:19.895
There’s not just one way to do things. Not long ago we did a podcast, it was a bait and switch bastards.
00:07:19.905 –> 00:07:29.445
And we were reading and talking about somebody inside a debt relief company who was talking about their experience on how they sold people debt relief.
00:07:29.455 –> 00:07:34.055
But a lot of the folks that you’re talking to are just reading a script.
00:07:34.365 –> 00:07:39.355
They are not financial professionals. They’re not looking out for your best interest.
00:07:39.365 –> 00:07:43.385
They’re trying to make the sale and make a commission. Let me give you an example.
00:07:43.916 –> 00:07:55.366
When people say, oh my God, I listen to some radio, personal finance guru, whoever it is and they said, I have a moral obligation to repay my debt,
00:07:55.376 –> 00:07:59.066
and this is going to take five years and I’m gonna live on beans and rice.
00:07:59.076 –> 00:08:04.356
The first question that comes to my mind is we can’t change the past.
00:08:04.366 –> 00:08:12.586
Do you have more of a responsibility to fix your financial past or fix your financial future?
00:08:12.596 –> 00:08:19.776
I mean what is more moral to repay debt that’s already behind you or to screw your future?
00:08:19.786 –> 00:08:31.386
Because if you don’t get yourself back in a position where you’re building a savings account or an emergency fund, something big happens, which it always does, tires, engine water heater.
00:08:31.396 –> 00:08:37.646
I think I’ve seen it all, it winds up back on credit and you, you’re exactly back where you started from Now.
00:08:37.656 –> 00:08:48.606
We started the podcast by saying that the title of this was do this and listen to this or you will make a million dollar mistake and here is that mistake.
00:08:48.616 –> 00:09:02.466
If you have not adequately saved for retirement or you’re draining your 401k, just kind of tread along without any solution, you are going to end up being old and broke.
00:09:02.476 –> 00:09:08.246
If you decide, look, I’m gonna learn from my mistake, I’m gonna do better moving forward.
00:09:08.256 –> 00:09:22.746
Maybe maybe bankruptcy makes sense for you and you’re able to file bankruptcy and you can discharge your debt in about 100 and 20 days and you start saving right then for retirement, you could have an extra million dollars.
00:09:22.746 –> 00:09:29.636
I’m, that’s, I’m not kidding on my site. Get out of debt dot org. There’s a calculator. You can look for the link on the right hand side.
00:09:29.646 –> 00:09:37.176
What repaying your debt will cost you and lost retirement and you can do the math yourself with your age and how much your payments are and everything else.
00:09:37.186 –> 00:09:46.686
If you’re in your forties or fifties, you’re going to just piss away more than a million dollars in trying to repay your old debt.
00:09:46.696 –> 00:09:49.416
Don’t react. Don’t assume.
00:09:49.858 –> 00:10:04.428
Don’t do anything until you get the facts and Damon. This is why I love the advice that you give people because for decades I used to talk to people and do phone consoles, I don’t do that anymore. I just research and write, that’s all I do.
00:10:04.548 –> 00:10:15.528
But yet you’re still talking to people and helping them through and giving them that customized review of their situation and helping them to learn is the most important thing.
00:10:15.538 –> 00:10:26.918
You’re not trying to jam something down their throat. You’re trying to help them by helping them with education and awareness and leading them to make a decision that is best for them.
00:10:26.918 –> 00:10:39.058
Can you think of a story of somebody you’ve talked to over these years where they came to you wanting to do X. And when you explained everything to them, they were like, why would I want to do that?
00:10:39.068 –> 00:10:44.178
You know, and I just want to make it clear, like I said before, there’s no solution, that’s right for everybody.
00:10:44.188 –> 00:10:49.938
So I don’t want it to come across like we say, everybody needs to go file bankruptcy so they can save a million dollars for retirement.
00:10:49.948 –> 00:10:54.938
What I’m saying is what drives me crazy is when people won’t even consider looking at us.
00:10:54.953 –> 00:11:05.563
So when I have a client and I say, you know, we’re looking at the situation, I’m looking at the numbers and I talked to them about, well, you know, if you could qualify for bankruptcy and we look at different things and I run the numbers with them.
00:11:05.573 –> 00:11:17.533
Oftentimes they realize, you know, I don’t want to ruin my credit and this, that, and the other thing. And as we talk it through most of the time, they realize they had it all built up really scary in their head. But that’s actually not what’s going to happen.
00:11:17.543 –> 00:11:23.928
And my big thing is if we look at something like bankruptcy or settlement or credit counseling or whatever it is.
00:11:24.256 –> 00:11:31.406
And we find something about that process because everything has pros and cons even paying your debt in full has pros and cons.
00:11:31.406 –> 00:11:40.426
Everything that everything we do is going to have, you know, good things about it that you like and things that you don’t like. So nobody can decide what you like the most other than you.
00:11:40.436 –> 00:11:52.076
What’s important for me is I have to walk my clients through these different strategies and say look if you look at this option and you file bankruptcy, this is what your life is gonna look like for the next couple of years and this is how much it’s gonna cost you.
00:11:52.076 –> 00:12:02.836
And this is what’s gonna happen to your credit now that we know we can compare it to different things and most of the time the client had no idea what you know like a bankruptcy would actually look like.
00:12:02.846 –> 00:12:16.076
But if we look at it and we find what I would call like a nonstarter, let’s say we find out that in your state, your house isn’t protected or you you make too much money to qualify for chapter seven and chapter 13 doesn’t make sense for you.
00:12:16.086 –> 00:12:21.976
Well that’s great. Now we know right? If you’re going to say no to a potential solution.
00:12:22.146 –> 00:12:31.546
The only thing I care about is that my client knows why they say they’re saying no, I don’t want them to say no because of well I think it’s gonna hurt my credit for 10 years.
00:12:31.546 –> 00:12:43.396
But they don’t actually know if it will, right? So that’s the big thing is let’s just look at everything now in terms of stories, I’ve got a million stories, whether we’re talking about bankruptcy or settlement or whatever.
00:12:43.406 –> 00:12:54.046
Most of the time, like I said, if you just walk somebody through exactly how your life would be affected, it really changes their perspective because most of the time.
00:12:54.426 –> 00:13:03.816
Uh consumers perspective of debt settlement or bankruptcy or credit counseling or debt snowball is actually wrong.
00:13:03.816 –> 00:13:10.506
There’s so much bad information out there in terms of if you do this, it’s gonna affect your credit in this way or this, that,
00:13:10.516 –> 00:13:22.386
there’s so much bad information and the reason why there’s bad information is because just sit down and think about the forces that are at work against you as a consumer wanting to give you misinformation.
00:13:22.396 –> 00:13:32.556
Let me give you a good example, think about who is financially incentivized to encourage you to look at bankruptcy as a potential option.
00:13:32.566 –> 00:13:39.136
Just think about that. Can you think of and you have the answer? So who is financially incentivized the bankruptcy attorney?
00:13:39.146 –> 00:13:46.386
The bankruptcy attorney. So when you think about that, you go, okay, so if I talk to a bankruptcy attorney, oh, they’re financially incentivized.
00:13:46.396 –> 00:13:54.616
So he’s gonna recommend bankruptcy. And so I know it’s, I’m not gonna trust that guy because I know he makes a commission right now think about this.
00:13:54.626 –> 00:14:09.181
Who is finance incentivized to make you afraid to even look at the option, any other debt relief provider, credit counseling, debt settlement, debt validation? Any one of these things that’s just a small part now, what about the banking industry in general?
00:14:09.231 –> 00:14:14.521
They would much rather have you continue to struggle and repay your debt. And here’s the funny thing.
00:14:15.056 –> 00:14:19.266
They want you to struggle repay your debt when you’re in the first part of collections.
00:14:19.276 –> 00:14:26.426
But when you get towards the end of collections, they’re like, here’s a settlement offer, Please go file bankruptcy.
00:14:26.826 –> 00:14:34.146
Yeah. But the biggest thing, this is what’s working against consumers and this is why consumers have misperceptions about things. Because it’s not a fair fight.
00:14:34.156 –> 00:14:45.816
It’s David and Goliath and I’m just using bankruptcy as an example. But we can pick any solution and we can go through, you know, who wants you to love the Dave Ramsey strategy, the freaking banking industry was the Dave Ramsey strategy.
00:14:45.826 –> 00:14:49.316
Again, I’m not saying it’s right. I’m not saying it’s wrong, But guess what?
00:14:49.316 –> 00:15:02.321
There’s billions of dollars that want you to believe that that’s gonna be the best. And only way to do things. So you just have to take a step back and think about where your assumptions come from.
00:15:02.331 –> 00:15:14.456
Because a lot of times what sounds like good advice is really horrible advice for you, right? So you really need to look at everything and that’s all we’re saying. We’re not saying everybody go file bankruptcy.
00:15:14.626 –> 00:15:24.406
We’re saying, look at everything. Don’t just assume that if you don’t pay your debts on time every single month, that automatically makes you a bad person and life happens exactly.
00:15:24.416 –> 00:15:27.826
Now, here’s here’s something that drives me crazy all the time. You’ve heard it.
00:15:27.836 –> 00:15:36.066
I’m sure people will say I need to repay my debt because I have a moral obligation to repay my debt, I have to repay my creditors.
00:15:36.076 –> 00:15:39.526
That’s what I heard on radio, that’s what I heard in the facebook forums.
00:15:39.536 –> 00:15:43.146
I have to repay my creditors. Okay. I understand that.
00:15:43.426 –> 00:15:51.556
But then when the debt settlement person sells you a solution where you re paying a percentage of your debt, how is that not the same thing?
00:15:51.796 –> 00:15:56.476
I mean, Well, if I pay back half more moral than if I pay back none.
00:15:56.486 –> 00:16:02.086
But but again, it’s not even a moral argument because that’s that’s an individual decision, right?
00:16:02.096 –> 00:16:11.176
And so for some people that might be the highest priority. And that’s fine. Again, there’s there’s no right way for everybody. But the other thing is.
00:16:11.554 –> 00:16:17.314
If I have a client that says, the only reason I want to file bankruptcy or settle my debt is because I’ve got a moral obligation. Pay it back.
00:16:17.324 –> 00:16:28.254
I look at it like this. Well, let’s say you file bankruptcy or even if you settled your debt because you’re struggling right now and you know your creditors are going to bend over backwards to do you any favors when you call them up and say, hey, look, I just lost my job.
00:16:28.264 –> 00:16:32.224
Can you give me a break for a couple of months until I get back on my feet and I can start paying you again?
00:16:32.234 –> 00:16:37.084
The answer is no. Now you put yourself in a position where you can be sued. They can garnish your way.
00:16:37.344 –> 00:16:44.154
Right, well what if you had a situation where you did have enough to settle that debt or Chapter seven made sense and you filed the bankruptcy.
00:16:44.164 –> 00:16:52.704
But then because you were morally conflicted about life happening to you even though maybe it wasn’t your fault and you weren’t able to fulfill those obligations.
00:16:52.714 –> 00:17:05.454
Well, once you’re out of that debt, either by resolving it through negotiation or filing a bankruptcy and now you don’t have the legal obligation to pay it. So you’re not in a situation where your creditors can dictate anything to you.
00:17:05.574 –> 00:17:09.034
Now you’re, now you’re back on your feet. Now you’re working again.
00:17:09.194 –> 00:17:13.674
If you feel conflicted, you can call every creditor that,
00:17:13.684 –> 00:17:24.884
you had that you settled the debt with at some point or you filed bankruptcy on and you can say, hey look, I’m doing a lot better now, I would like to start paying you back and then see what they say.
00:17:24.894 –> 00:17:28.164
What do they say most of the time anyway, please don’t send any money.
00:17:30.144 –> 00:17:35.134
Well it’s because they’re not allowed to collect money for a debt that’s already been discharged.
00:17:35.144 –> 00:17:41.814
But, but let’s go back to that moral argument. I have a moral responsibility to repay my debt from the past.
00:17:41.824 –> 00:17:50.634
I ran up the debt. This is my responsibility to which I always say to people do you have a moral responsibility to yourself in the future?
00:17:50.884 –> 00:18:02.734
I know that you’re feeling stressed and panicked right now, but before you know it, you are going to be 80 years old and retired and most people retire only on social security and have little money.
00:18:02.744 –> 00:18:08.234
You will be unable to feed yourself, live safely, have utilities.
00:18:08.683 –> 00:18:18.473
Don’t you have a moral responsibility to your future self as well or instead I’m not telling anybody what to do. You are not telling anybody what to do.
00:18:18.483 –> 00:18:25.683
All we’re asking them to do is don’t believe everything you think. Let’s fight through these assumptions.
00:18:25.693 –> 00:18:39.013
Let’s talk about facts and let’s come up with a personal individual solution that addresses your situation and please just don’t blindly sign up for some one size fits none solution.
00:18:39.033 –> 00:18:49.773
Yeah, it’s simple. If you’re about to implement a solution, you should be in a position to say here’s all the other potential options I could have taken.
00:18:49.783 –> 00:18:53.663
And here’s why I don’t like those options.
00:18:53.903 –> 00:18:57.623
If you can’t answer that, you’re not ready to,
00:18:57.633 –> 00:19:10.533
put together a plan and move forward with something, whether somebody’s selling you something, whether it’s, you know, consolidating your debt into a personal loan and paying it off that way and debt snowball or filing bankruptcy or settling your debt or whatever it is.
00:19:10.543 –> 00:19:16.013
If you can’t sit there and say, here’s all the other options that maybe could have worked.
00:19:16.023 –> 00:19:22.603
But here’s the reasons why I declined each one of those and why I like the one that I’m gonna do the best.
00:19:22.613 –> 00:19:33.363
You’re not ready to make that decision. You need to know what the alternatives are and if you don’t know what the alternatives are, there’s no way for you to know if what you’re about to do is a good idea.
00:19:33.393 –> 00:19:44.533
It’s like saying some of your tools are not good to use, whatever happens. I’m never using that hammer, I’m never pulling that hammer out of that toolbox, even though that might be the right tool to use in that particular situation.
00:19:44.543 –> 00:19:51.403
Through information comes clarity, and through clarity comes the best decision that you can make.
00:19:51.413 –> 00:19:55.383
You might want to decide steve or Damon.
00:19:56.035 –> 00:20:02.515
I totally want to screw my retirement and piss away a million dollars. I’m down for that. That sounds like the best thing to do.
00:20:02.665 –> 00:20:08.645
That’s what you wanna do, honest to God, neither Damon nor myself are going to judge you for that.
00:20:08.655 –> 00:20:12.255
We just want you to have the information period. Yeah.
00:20:12.265 –> 00:20:21.935
Because until you have the information, you can’t make the decision and that’s what brings us back full circle to going into these facebook groups and nobody goes in there and recommends.
00:20:21.935 –> 00:20:34.745
And most of these groups anyway, unless it is a debt relief group and some of those groups are just groups created by debt relief companies, you know, their disguises advice and they’re just pushing you towards the, you know, the debt settlement or whatever it is.
00:20:34.755 –> 00:20:45.575
But to find to go into a form and ask for advice but realize the advice that you’re getting back is coming from unknown source, who knows nothing about your situation. So how good is that advice?
00:20:45.585 –> 00:20:56.695
Unfortunately, it’s really hard for people to tell who is giving them slanted advice and who’s giving them legitimate advice on our recent bait and switch bastards podcast.
00:20:56.695 –> 00:21:09.205
We talked about all these personal consolidation loan mailers that people are getting that are really just lead generators or bait and switch to throw them in some sort of other debt relief program.
00:21:09.215 –> 00:21:16.665
First off, if they’re trying to push you into signing a client agreement and they won’t give it to you and they won’t let you review it and they want you to sign it online now.
00:21:16.675 –> 00:21:23.885
Run the hell away. The second thing is, take a breath. It’s okay. Listen to all the information.
00:21:24.165 –> 00:21:30.495
If you visit my site, get out of debt dot org and read all sorts of articles and maybe you send me a question or something.
00:21:30.505 –> 00:21:36.075
That’s fine. If you contact Damon, have a phone call with him and you ask him questions, that’s fine.
00:21:36.085 –> 00:21:40.645
We’re not saying don’t contact debt settlement companies, credit counseling.
00:21:40.655 –> 00:21:46.145
What I am saying is get all the information and then stop.
00:21:46.673 –> 00:21:50.623
Take a breath, let it percolate for a day or two.
00:21:50.643 –> 00:22:01.473
Contemplate it and if you have any questions get satisfactory answers before you leap and do the wrong thing and again piss away a million dollars.
00:22:01.483 –> 00:22:04.893
Like I said before, that’s not hyperbole, that’s not an exaggeration.
00:22:04.943 –> 00:22:12.763
The math doesn’t lie. You make the wrong mistake in your forties and fifties and you are losing out on a comfortable retirement.
00:22:12.773 –> 00:22:19.953
I’ve got a good story for you. This is a couple of years ago I had a client just briefly because she didn’t end up liking my advice.
00:22:19.963 –> 00:22:27.273
Then she was no longer a client and I won’t get too much into her situation. But basically a bankruptcy made absolutely bar none the most sense.
00:22:27.283 –> 00:22:33.503
As a couple with kids, they weren’t making very much money. They had way too much debt than they could even hope to pay back.
00:22:33.513 –> 00:22:47.386
The only asset they had was the house, that house had equity in it and but it was protected equity in bankruptcy so they could have filed the chapter seven literally and I don’t remember how much it was but that the debt was about double what their annual income was at least.
00:22:47.396 –> 00:22:50.526
And they just were struggling young family had young kids, right?
00:22:50.536 –> 00:22:57.266
She didn’t like the idea of bankruptcy, but we spent several consults going over it.
00:22:57.276 –> 00:23:06.429
We met with, I had to meet with the bankruptcy attorney. We met back with it and she was, you know, this all makes sense and I’m gonna protect my house and everything was gonna be wiped out.
00:23:06.429 –> 00:23:15.779
And then when the debt was gone, she would actually have some cash flow have instead of being stressed month to month and getting deeper in debt. That was the only way they got to this point was they were living on credit cards.
00:23:15.859 –> 00:23:22.059
But those credit cards were maxed out. They could not even even with the debt wiped out, they were going to struggle just to barely make their bills.
00:23:22.069 –> 00:23:28.973
So I got her on path. She was gonna file the bankruptcy and and and that was the best by far strategy.
00:23:29.503 –> 00:23:33.193
A few weeks later I get a phone call from her and she’s upset at me,
00:23:33.373 –> 00:23:45.653
and she’s like, I talked to my financial friend and she said that you don’t know what you’re talking about bankruptcy is the worst thing I could possibly do and I have to exhaust all options.
00:23:45.663 –> 00:23:48.983
I mean, she was like literally mad at me, right?
00:23:48.993 –> 00:23:54.848
And I said, okay, well what was the solution that your friend came up with?
00:23:54.858 –> 00:24:03.428
Oh well, she says I need to get a home equity loan, pull the money out of the house and then I can pay my bills off and I like that better because that will save my credit.
00:24:03.438 –> 00:24:05.918
And that was really what’s most important to me.
00:24:06.358 –> 00:24:12.208
And I said out of curiosity, what does your friend do for a living?
00:24:13.048 –> 00:24:15.528
She she’s a mortgage broker.
00:24:16.433 –> 00:24:23.033
Oh wow. So you’re saying the mortgage brokers advice is to get a loan.
00:24:23.043 –> 00:24:29.993
I’m shocked. Here’s the best part of it, Well, not the best part for the client, but here’s the here’s how the story ended.
00:24:30.003 –> 00:24:32.243
Two years later, I got a phone call.
00:24:33.107 –> 00:24:42.317
From the client, a former client, I just want to let you know, I feel bad for how I kind of ended things, but I wish I would have listened to you.
00:24:42.327 –> 00:24:46.607
But I didn’t, we pulled out the money, we paid off all of our debt.
00:24:46.617 –> 00:24:55.677
But unfortunately because we didn’t really change much, we ran up the credit cards again and now we’re filing bankruptcy to protect the house.
00:24:58.107 –> 00:25:01.187
And so they ended up doing the bankruptcy anyway.
00:25:01.197 –> 00:25:06.157
The only difference is now they don’t have any equity in the house, They just missed it away. But here’s the good thing.
00:25:06.167 –> 00:25:11.887
Her mortgage broker friend got a nice commission. Pay attention to where you’re getting your freaking advice.
00:25:11.897 –> 00:25:14.827
What really upset me about the whole thing was she was mad at me.
00:25:14.827 –> 00:25:17.867
Like she’s like you didn’t tell me, you know why didn’t you suggest this?
00:25:17.867 –> 00:25:21.527
And I said cause it’s a bad idea, that’s why I suggested it.
00:25:22.127 –> 00:25:25.527
It’s idea you just lost the only,
00:25:25.537 –> 00:25:37.987
asset you had that you could have protected and moved forward with no debt and had all that equity in that house and now you’re having to rush and do this bankruptcy so you don’t lose the only asset you had because your friend,
00:25:38.217 –> 00:25:40.087
maybe it was well intentioned.
00:25:40.097 –> 00:25:44.407
But how do mortgage brokers quote unquote solve debt problems?
00:25:45.237 –> 00:25:52.167
Exactly, get more money out of your housing Piggy bank, that’s their only solution cause that’s what they do and they don’t like bankruptcy,
00:25:52.257 –> 00:26:02.577
bankruptcy means you might not qualify for a mortgage and if you don’t qualify for a mortgage right after your bankruptcy I can’t make a commission, I’m gonna take this back around to that facebook for something that you were in.
00:26:02.967 –> 00:26:06.677
So people are trying to repay their debt. They’re struggling.
00:26:06.687 –> 00:26:14.767
We’ve cut our budget, we’re living on beans and rice. People will say get a second job, cut back more slave to your debt more.
00:26:14.767 –> 00:26:27.877
You can do it and struggle more unless you are saving money while you’re getting out of debt, unless you are saving for retirement, while you’re getting out of debt, you are not really getting ahead.
00:26:27.887 –> 00:26:33.607
All it will take is one thing in life, job reduction, some surprise.
00:26:33.617 –> 00:26:38.637
I remember I had a client, she was driving a minivan with their grandkids in the back.
00:26:38.647 –> 00:26:50.257
She was going down the highway and she was the primary breadwinner for this family and she was going down the highway and somebody cut her off and she went off into the median strip to avoid hitting them.
00:26:50.267 –> 00:26:54.807
And a construction company had left a railroad tie laying there.
00:26:55.127 –> 00:27:01.727
She hit the tie, luckily the grandkids in the back were injured, but she broke her back and she was out of work essentially.
00:27:01.727 –> 00:27:10.147
She wasted the last three years of just getting by and living with no air conditioning and beans and rice and the whole thing.
00:27:10.718 –> 00:27:15.498
For nothing and had no money in savings. I don’t have anything for that.
00:27:15.508 –> 00:27:22.118
Well, I know, I wish I could sit here and think of every situation I’ve ever dealt with just really sucked.
00:27:22.128 –> 00:27:27.568
But we’ve had a lot of them. I think we got the point across which is before you leap to do anything.
00:27:27.578 –> 00:27:35.818
Get all the facts. Get informed, educate yourself and make a good informed decision.
00:27:36.128 –> 00:27:48.718
I want you to be happy in the future. Set yourself up for future financial success and don’t be one of the people that day after day makes a tragic mistake and screws up their future,
00:27:48.778 –> 00:27:53.878
and be comfortable with whatever decision you make and the way to get comfortable with it again,
00:27:54.118 –> 00:27:59.258
is to look at all the options and go with the one that you are the most comfortable with.
00:27:59.258 –> 00:28:03.868
Not that some financial guru, it tells you is right or whatever.
00:28:03.878 –> 00:28:10.198
Go with the one that is most comfortable for you. It’s your money, it’s your credit and it’s your life.
00:28:10.208 –> 00:28:16.558
So it’s your damn decision on that note, Damon. I think we should wrap this up because we’re done.
00:28:17.348 –> 00:28:23.968
I think we’re done in the first five minutes. We just took the whole time to drive home the point, right?
00:28:23.978 –> 00:28:28.588
Don’t do anything until you’ve looked at everything.
00:28:28.598 –> 00:28:34.078
How do people contact you through your website? Right, DamoneDay.com.
00:28:34.178 –> 00:28:38.638
The daMonday.com daMonday.com. Alright. Thanks Damon. You’re welcome.
Bonus Video
https://youtu.be/B9XGUpQZY38
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