Dave Ramsey or Carmen Ulrich

[Mistee]

I watch both money gurus and Dave says to pay off your smallest debt first, regardless of the interest rate, and then when that is paid off, go to your next smallest debt, etc., etc. and to pay the minimum on all of your other debts. Many people, like me, have bought Dave's Total Money Makeover book and have some CDs. Dave is the first person my husband has actually sat down and listened to and watched and willing to follow his plan to getting out of debt.

We are in our third month of creating a budget and it seems to be working at last. This month we were able to put a name on every dollar we are bringing in and that's amazing because we were out of control before with the spending.

Carmen Ulrich's "On the Money Show" is also a favorite of mine as well. She states to pay down your largest interest bill first and to put $200.00 a month towards it and pay the minimum on your other credit card bills and in 2-3 years you will be completely out of debt!

I like Carmen's show because she listed RetirementJobs.com and the first time my hubby went to that website, he was hired by the bank and he is still there and that was over nine months ago! Carmen has a great show.

Which method or does either one appeal to you and which one have you tried with success? We have made our get out of debt date April, 2013 and that includes our home!

Thank you in advance for answering and sharing!

[maat55]

Dave Ramsey's system is geared to motivate you to the finish line. It is his opinion based on many years of councelling those in debt, that motivation is more important than the numbers when you are geared for a quick payoff plan.

Technically, paying the highest interest is the most efficient way, but gives little in incentive in many cases.

I recommend anyone who is in debt and has trouble managing their finances to follow Dave's plan. Eventually, some will master their finances and can venture into managing credit card reward plans and using longer term mortgages to increase their net worth.

[nmboone]

I love Carmen's show too! I haven't caught it in a while unfortunately but I love the information on the website. Also great job on getting spending under control!!

Both methods are actually great, it just depends on how you are motivated. Dave Ramsey suggests paying the smallest debt amount first in order to give you small victories toward erasing all of your debt. Yes, you will pay more on the overall debt but at least it will motivate you to get rid of debt. It has helped numerous people.

Carmen's method isn't so much hers but a more overall common sense approach. If you get rid of the highest amount of debt first, there is less interest and less money you will pay overall. If you can keep paying on the largest of your debts until it's gone without losing the motivation to keep paying on it, this way will cost you much less in interest (usually, every situation is somewhat different though.) The $200 thing though, is that on top of the minimum that you pay on the debt, because that wouldn't be necessary in every case!

As far as my favorite, I'm honestly not sure how to go. I don't have CC debt so that isn't a problem, but I do have a car loan which is 4,600 at 6.0% and 13,200 in student loans at around 6.8%. I am trying to get rid of the car loan first since I am not paying on the student loan until January. I will try to pay the car loan off or nearly paid by May of next year. I also am paying a lot extra on the loan. If I had to pick, I personally like Carmen's outlook.

[disneysteve]

As the others have said, DR's method is based on psychology. Carmen's method is based purely on the numbers. You just need to know what type of person you are. Do you need the perk from paying off a small loan and crossing it off the list or are you a big picture kind of person who cares more about the method that will save you the most money in the end?

[FrugalIII]

I think they both have good plans, but I too like DR better. Just a personal thing but Carmen's voice annoys me. If I were in debt, I think I'd rather follow DR's plan. I watch his show every night to hear what others have done and their success stories. If nothing else it should motivate others to do likewise. I like his honesty and forthright way of talking to people.

[arthurb999]

Over the long run, Carmen's will cost you less money in interest... all other things being equal.

[ktmarvels]

Personally I'd do a hybrid plan. If there were a couple of smaller debts I'd work to pay them off first, especially if it could be done quickly. Then I'd work on paying the ones with the highest interest rates. That way you get the best of both worlds...you get the psychological boost of actually paying something off, but then you also will save some money by paying highest interest debt first.

[Mistee]

Thanks people! Again your knowledge and expertise has won me over hands down! The comments are well noted.

Seems like we're on target with Dave Ramsey and we do need the perks to keep us motivated disneysteve! It does take two to work an effective payoff system because one on board just won't cut it. Hubby says Dave's approach is more realistic and with a gazelle intensity we can wipe out the bills we have in no time!

People keep the comments coming as I noticed so many people just need a plan to tackle their debt rather than a spanking or lecture telling them how much debt they are in. We have been there done that and have the T-shirt LOL.

[Ima saver]

If you are motivated with Dave's plan, stick to it and good luck to you!

[elessar78]

I like DR's methodology. When you're just starting out, behavior is more important than math.

[anonymous_saver]

I've never heard of Carmen before but she sounds to be more like Suze Orman. I'm much more of a Suze Orman fan over Dave Ramsey. I'm 100% in support of paying off highest interest debt first, and to start immediately (in any situation to put money into an employers retirement plan when they match funds. The one part I will take from Dave Ramsey is his step of saving $1,000 for an EF first. But allong with that I would do the above method that I described.

Edited part: I think I have read that book by Carmen, Generation Debt. It was okay, kind of boring and not as informative as Suze Orman's YF&B book in my opinion.

[disneysteve]

I must admit I've tried to watch Carmen a few times simply because I'm a personal finance junkie and suck up that stuff, but I just can't get into her show. I don't know if it is her or the format or the guests or what but I just can't stick with it. I enjoy watching Suze Orman's show. Can't stand Dave Ramsey but fortunately it isn't aired in my area anyway. I watch Clark Howard occasionally and he's okay.

[ActYourWage]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

I must admit I've tried to watch Carmen a few times simply because I'm a personal finance junkie and suck up that stuff, but I just can't get into her show. I don't know if it is her or the format or the guests or what but I just can't stick with it. I enjoy watching Suze Orman's show. Can't stand Dave Ramsey but fortunately it isn't aired in my area anyway. I watch Clark Howard occasionally and he's okay.

I think Dave Ramsey is better on the radio, he is kinda boring on TV.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by ActYourWage

I think Dave Ramsey is better on the radio, he is kinda boring on TV.

Actually, Clark Howard is like that. My wife doesn't like watching him because he's wearing the headset and at the control panel doing the radio show but being filmed for TV.

[cantretire]

I kind of used both. When I started my debt pay down, I had 3 large balance cards and 3 or 4 little store cards with less than a few hundred each. I realized that if I paid the minimum on the larger cards, I could get the little ones paid off in 5 months. It actually only took 3 months and then I started putting extra on the highest interest of the 3 big ones to save on interest. Paying off the smaller balances helped jumped start my pay down and helped mentally. I cut up those little cards.

Think about your thinking and emotional processes and decide what's best for you.

[Bimmer]

I've only seen ads, but Carmen's show seems like it might be sensationalized a bit. The ads make it look annoying.

Dave R is both great and annoying. Some great advice/commentary, but he drives me nuts when he cracks a joke and laughs hysterically at himself. The joke might deserve a chuckle, but he's a bit over the top sometimes.

Just follow the advice that works best for you. If you are a numbers person, go with Carmen. If you need a psychological boost, go with Dave. Or combine them, which is what I did. Paid off a few small balances first, then went by interest rate.

[ceejay74]

I so agree that knocking out big, higher-interest debts is much less motivating. It takes sooo long. But my highest-interest is 8.99% and all my other debts are under 7%, so I can't in good conscience stop hacking at this biggie till it's done!

I enjoyed DR's TV show for awhile. He seemed pretty sharp and has a commonsense way of talking. I didn't mind that we're polar opposites in many fundamental ways (atheist vs. Christian, for one). But he drove my husband nuts so finally I stopped watching of my own accord, but for his sake. LOL.

Me and Suze are GLBT so you'd think I'd like her better, but she scares me with her big rolling eyes and frequent use of "girlfriend."

I like docudramas that follow one person or family in their quest to overhaul their financial lives, a la Big Spender and Maxed Out, but neither of those shows is running new episodes, alas.

I should check out this Carmen show. I need a financial show to relate to; my one friend who was going to go on a debt-payoff, budgeted lifestyle has fallen off the wagon and I have no one outside my family to talk to!

[maat55]

I have seen her show many times on CNBC and found her to be generic. Not that she is not insightfull, just nothing to get excitied about.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by maat55

I have seen her show many times on CNBC and found her to be generic. Not that she is not insightfull, just nothing to get excitied about.

I think that's my problem. Carmen's show just doesn't have a draw for me. With Suze, I love the Can I Afford It? segment. I'd watch the show if that's all it was. Carmen's show just doesn't grab me.

[FrugalIII]

My biggest draw to these shows is my fascination with how so many people rack up such huge credit card balances. It's amazing to me how anyone could get into $40k or more debt on a credit card. Sure, I have used credit cards plenty, didn't always pay off the balance every month, but have never been that far in debt with plastic.
Fortunately, after listening to DR for so long, I no longer use credit cards for anything. Debit card or cash........
I'm debt free except my house and I'm working on that!
I hate the Clark Howard show. I watched it a couple of times but just can't handle his personality.