<p>I pay less in tuition to send my son to a private LAC then any state school in NY. </p>
<p>“He also wants you to pay-off your house. If you have 3% fixed loan, then I’d take that advise with a mountain of salt.”</p>
<p>My mgt. is 3.5%. The last thing I want to do is pay it off.</p>
<p>Here’s my two cents, for what it’s worth. I took the Dave Ramsey class in my public high school, and did not feel any overtly religious themes (I’m not a Christian). But, also, I don’t think he understands the modern college process. He hardly mentioned financial aid and didn’t mention an option besides public schooling, which, in all honesty, is not the best option for all students. I genuinely wonder if he understands financial aid, merit aid, and college education that much. I realize he is a “financial guru” but still.</p>
<p>I’m paying my house down and my rate is under 3%. There is something to be said for having a paid for home. I’d never want to retire with a mortgage, no matter what the rate. But that is personal preference, we had our fair share of financial turmoil early on, and I am a debt avoider, the few thousand here or there wouldn’t feel as good as knowing should it all hit the fan we could live on a pretty small salary.</p>
<p>Are you sure he said never to GO to private school? Or did he say never to go into debt to go to private school? Dave Ramsey’s baby steps advice for getting out of debt is pretty great, but I have often heard him say things that make me wish he’d stick to that advice and not try to give advice (or offer political commentary) that is beyond that.<br>
He is big on not being in debt…at all. But, his advice is also all about living financially smart so that you can afford to do what you want to do, and if what you want is to pay for private school, and you can afford it, without debt, I suspect he’d be ok with that. Then again, you don’t need Dave Ramsey to approve of your decisions. 
Even he says that you shouldn’t replace your
Dave Ramsey’s advice really helped us a couple years ago. It was just so obvious once we heard it, but sometimes you just need someone to state the obvious in a way that hits home, and he has a talent for that.</p>
<p>Agree with shoboemom - Ramsey’s audience is people trying to get out of debt. That’s his expertise and he’s sort of a Suze Orman where he tells people they can’t afford things. He’s very decisive - no middle ground - and quick to call people’s decisions stupid without listening to the whole situation. His debt snowball advice really works for a lot of my clients!</p>
<p>We have taken his course (the old, 13-week one). I don’t remember his specifically saying NEVER to go to a private college, but it has been awhile. He would definitely not think it was worth the debt to do so, and it <em>seems</em> like I remember his saying not to feel guilty if you send your kid to a public university and have friends who are sending their kids to private. I also seem to remember his saying that parents are not obligated to send their kids to college at all, but that was a noble goal. I thought he laid out a plan for saving for college with the idea of accumulating around $100,000 which he thought should be “enough” to cover a state university and that that was good enough for anyone. Please forgive me if I am not remembering this correctly.</p>
<p>However, I agree with other posters who stated that if you have the money and all other items taken care of via his “baby steps” (no credit card debt, emergency fund fully funded, house paid off, retirement in great shape) that he would say you should spend your money on what you want. </p>
<p>The only general flaw that I think his system has is his assumed rate of return that can be earned in the market.</p>
<p>You really have to hear his whole philosophy to appreciate it, and it works for very many people. </p>
<p>For example, he talks about buying old used cars that you can afford without a loan. Does he say EVERYONE should do this? No. He recommends this to people who are in debt or would need to go into debt to buy a nicer car. But when people call in to his radio program to say they are debt free and just paid cash for a new Jaguar or whatever, he congratulates them. His logic on paying down debt, even low interest debt, is clear. Would you borrow at 3% to invest the money? Of course not, unless you have a guaranteed way to make more than 3%, which you probably don’t. If you have debt, and you are using your extra money for “something other” than paying down that debt, it is just as if you had borrowed the money for that “something other”. There is psychology involved as well. Once you are debt free, that is one less stresser in your life, you feel better, you start to save more, blah blah. </p>
<p>We have lived this way since WAY before Dave Ramsey. It works for us. No need to call Dave Ramsey an idiot or a moron. Just don’t follow his advice if you don’t like it (but if you actually listen to his whole philosophy, you might find that it’s pretty hard to argue with).</p>
<p>^agree Barfly!</p>
<p>We are 100% debt-free and have been for a long time.</p>
<p>OP here. I am positive he said NEVER attend a private college. He said pedigree is not important nor the school anyone attends. Just go to your in-state public and pocket the difference. I was in a room with 8 people and we all heard it. </p>
<p>Don’t get me wrong, I love most of his advice and have found it very valuable. I would actually advise anyone to attend the seminar. I just feel he’s very much in the wrong by making such a blanket statement on this.</p>
<p>^not doubting you OP! I took the older course that was 13 weeks long. Perhaps he has changed his stance or perhaps I had misremembered (is that a word??) what he said.</p>
<p>I don’t agree with that as a blanket statement either.</p>
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<p>“Most” students? This isn’t true for many elite private colleges and universities. At Duke, for example, 54.8% of the students pay full sticker price. At Brown, 55.6% are full-pays. At WashU (WUSTL), 60.1% are full-pays. At a number of Ivies it’s about 50-50 full-pays v. FA. HYP are exceptions because their FA policies are more generous at the top end, but a very large fraction of the students attending expensive private colleges are paying full sticker price; half or more is pretty much the norm.</p>
<p>I’d say “most” people don’t plan AT ALL for their kids to go to college. Then here comes senior year, they see tuition, and they have a heart attack. I bet he’s talking to most people, who aren’t savvy, whose kids aren’t exceptional and getting scholarships. </p>
<p>I agree with barfly - either listen or don’t. Load up on debt or don’t. </p>
<p>His main thing is the baby steps of paying down debt, having money in savings and a plan to send your kids to college and pay off your home. And his opinion is just that - his. It worked for me, but I certainly don’t follow every word like gospel. There are always exceptions.</p>
<p>I agree with the posters who have said that Dave Ramsey has a simplistic approach to finance that is generally good advice for those in debt or poor money managers. I have found that it is important Never to say Never. He has similar absolutes about life insurance as well. Cheap Term only and invest the difference. Makes sense for many people but it is not always the right choice for everyone. Depends on your situation. To say never go to a private school is just silly. I hate these guru’s who give such absolute advice without even asking you one question about your own personal situation.</p>
<p>Barfly, post #27, nails it. I’ve been listening to him for over a decade, and have definitely wished I took some of his advice! </p>
<p>But I definitely disagree with him about certain things. Realize, he is generalizing very often, and is talking to the lowest common denominator. His advice is not always accurate, when you get into the specifics of a situation. I think he has some points that he always seems to stick to, because he’s talking to the majority. I’ll bet that if someone called and said their kid could go to a great public college for less than private, or that they had plenty of extra money, he’d tell them to go for it.</p>
<p>A lot of his philosophies are based upon the psychology of paying off debt, and not necessarily anything else. His assumption that when you start investing, you will get a ROR of 13% is unlikely, and he is dead wrong sometimes for people who are sophisticated with their money. But he’s not talking to them, he’s talking to the typical person who overspends and doesn’t save.</p>
<p>My husband wants to call him one time, tell him how much debt we have, and listen to him scream…before he actually understands the details of our specific situation, that help the debt make sense. I doubt that Dave still lives off the envelope system…but I still really enjoy listening to him. He has helped many people.</p>
<p>momtotwins is absolutely correct to point out the shortcomings of Dave’s pronouncements about term insurance!</p>
<p>For 85% of the country he is most likely correct - term insurance is best. However, for the other 15% he could possibly be sued - if he was hired in a fiduciary capacity and gave such a recommendation. Of course he gets around this; if you look at the fine print in his books, he disclaims all liability and tells you to consult with licensed professionals.</p>
<p>I would apply the same caveat to any advice he may offer on private colleges.</p>
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<p>Wiki says he got rich by age 26 in real estate. I very much doubt if he managed that without aggressive use of debt, and deferring saving for retirement, and not having a 6-12 month cushion, etc.</p>
<p>Seems to me he lives one way himself and gives plodding, dull, conservative (and often wrong) advice to the masses, in exchange for more money.</p>
<p>What’s more, the word ‘guru’ is nonsensical in this context!</p>
<p>"Wiki says he got rich by age 26 in real estate. I very much doubt if he managed that without aggressive use of debt, and deferring saving for retirement, and not having a 6-12 month cushion, etc.</p>
<p>Seems to me he lives one way himself and gives plodding, dull, conservative (and often wrong) advice to the masses, in exchange for more money."</p>
<p>If you listen to him long enough, you will hear about how he paid the, “Stupid tax”, and after he got rich, he lost it all in bankruptcy. He has lived the way he preaches, went from rich to broke, and brought himself back. However he lives now, I’m sure he doesn’t take any debt, use credit cards, and is rich enough to do whatever he wants. He is a very moral man, agree or disagree with his advice…during the stock market plunge, while everybody was losing their jobs, had you followed his advice, you’d have done well.</p>
<p>But you have to realize this is generic advice, that is generally good for the masses but not necessarily for everyone.</p>
<p>Ramsey spoke at Liberty U this week.</p>
<p><a href=“Redirect Notice”>Redirect Notice;
<p>Many privates offer huge Merit awards to the top applicatns. Since they do not care OOS vs IS, privates might be a much cheaper option for certain applicants.<br>
My D. has applied primarily to state publics, except for one private. This private gave her the highest Merit award, that would leave the balance of $5k / year in tuition for us to pay, by far much cheaper than D’s publics (except for one that gave her full tuition Merit). D. has chosen state public for her UG for non-financial reasons, and it was nice that it was free. The main reason why she has not chosen private was student body that primarily consistant of intense geeks. She was looking for a variety of experiences, meeting people of different interests while pursuing pre-med in college. She did not want to be with the same type of people. However, for somebody else, this private could have been a perfect place, exactly what they are looking for.</p>
<p>…BTW, I never listen to anybody, I do my own research, so I had no idea who is Ramsey as well as many other “gurus”, I simply do not care, they can say whatever, I want to see for myself what is out there, I do not trust anybody, we did not trust D’s college couselor, we just went to mandatory meetings and respectfully nodded. I cannot imagine leaving such an important family decisions in somebody else’s hands. Sounds like trouble to me.</p>