Proverbs 13:11 (NIV): “Dishonest money dwindles away, buy whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.”

Tonight’s talk started with an overview of human greed and eagerness to “Get rich quick” and Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) starting with Dave’s personal story.

• 1983 Dave’s story: Learning to buy investment Real Estate with NOTHING down. Only $3,500 to attend the weekend seminar to learn how to make millions on zero down real estate! Dave figured out 0 down on his own, did not go to the seminar, and by the end of the week made his first purchase with $0 down. By 26 years old, he owned $4 million worth of real state and owed $3 million. He then explained how the banks called his loans and he lost everything he built. Dave reminded us, Robert Allen who wrote the book “Nothing down, how the Buy Real Estate with Little or No Money” filed Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.

• Mid 1600’s: Tulipmania occurred when speculation drove the value of tulip bulbs to “10 times the average person’s income”.

• 1848: James Marshall and John Sutter discover gold in the American River. In the end, James Marshall died an alcoholic and impoverished.

• 1920: We had the Roaring 20’s where people were going to get rich on the stock market. From 1921-1929 the Dow increased almost 500% peaking at 381.17 on September 3, 1929. October 29, 1929 (Black Tuesday) Billions of dollars were lost. Finally getting to 1932 stock’s value were approximately 20% of their value compared to the summer of 1929.

• 1920 continued: Charles Ponzi, starter of the Ponzi Scheme. Charles Ponzi swindled approximately $20 million (about $258 million in 2022) from investors. In September 1925, he started Charpon Land Syndicate promising investors 200% returns in 60 days!!! He did this by selling swamp land in Columbia County Florida.

• 1960: Glen W. Turner, ran another Ponzi scheme resulting in imprisonment. James Frasca wrote a biography regarding Mr. Turner named: “Conman or Saint” where he quoted Mr. Turner “You can con someone of any level of intellect or education if you activate fear or greed.”

• 1980 The Airplane Ride Scheme, or The Plane Game: Where people were promised quick money. From Associate General Counsel for the state Securities Commission in Oklahoma, Spencer Barasch, “On these pyramid-type schemes, for the most part, the victims are just about as greedy as the promoters.”

• 1990 .com bubble: People investing into companies that were essentially worthless all because they made a website and concluded with .com. These worthless companies went bankrupt resulting in a total loss of investment.

• Dave went on to touch on some “sophisticated” 21st century trends including: Beanie Babies, Pokemon cards, Game Stop Stock, Crypto Currency, a new trend of $0 down real estate.

George Santayana, Spanish-American philosopher: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

Part 2 of tonight’s live stream: Round table, where Dave Ramsey is joined by personalities, Rachel Cruze and George Kamel.

Dave admits having mixed emotions with Crypto currency. Dave would like more data and he is concerned with the attitude of investors associated with Crypto currency. George Kamel reviewed his episode of “The Fine Print” and stated Crypto currency has No Regulating Body which can make it susceptible to fraud. Positives included:

1. Traded 24/7,

2. No Fees,

3. No Government control, which Dave added was a big plus for him.

Dave and George went on to discuss they are not opposed to people “Playing” in Crypto currency following:

1. Starter emergency fund

2. Getting out of debt

3. Fully funded emergency fund

4. Investing 15% into retirement

Then if the monthly Zero based budget allows, have a subcategory to “Play” in Crypto.

George discussed Non Fungible Tokens (NFT) where people have a “Digital ownership” of coins.

The discussion also included the government’s successful government loan forgiveness program!! Where there are 3 ways to get your student loans forgiven:

1. Death

2. Disability

3. Public Student Loan Forgiveness program

Under the Public student loan forgiveness program as of this live stream, there have been approximately 280,000 applicants and of those, 6,000 have been approved. That’s 2.14%! Other than just having the very low approval rating, people are required to work 10 years in a non profit/underserved public area, where the compensation tends to be on average lower than private sectors. Opposed to just following the baby steps where the average person pays their loans off in 18-24 months.

Highlight of the night included a personal story from Webster. This is a 64-year-old gentleman who is a high school graduate with a learning disability. He started working in 1977 making $4,800 a year. In 1999, he was first introduced to Dave Ramsey and the Baby Steps where he was making $36,000 a year. He followed Dave’s advice, got out of debt and invested in himself and obtained 180 different certifications in technology and increased his income to $180,000 a year. Webster has become an Everyday Millionaire and is one of the stories in Dave’s new book, with a net worth of approximately $1.4 million: $250,000 with primary residence, $1 million in retirement savings and $200,000 in other accounts.

When building wealth, although it would be nice if there was a quick fix, it takes time, dedication and a plan. At Whitaker Myers Wealth Managers, we now have a Ramsey Certified Coach who can help guide you through your debt journey. We have a team of SmartVestor Pros who can assist you in investing like Dave recommends. We have a tax ELP’s who can assist you in the complicated realm of taxes. We have independent insurance agents who can help you with Term and other insurances as recommended by Dave. We now have an attorney on staff who can assist in setting up Living Wills and a smooth transition to end of life planning. We are here to serve you in whatever Baby Step you are completing!