Christian way to ensure you dont buy Stolen goods

Dear Dave: I own a small business specializing in cell phone repair. Sometimes I buy phones and parts on eBay. I can make sure the phones are not stolen by running a check on the serial numbers. However, I cannot be certain about the individual parts. Is there a way I can ensure I'm not dealing with stolen parts?

— Gordan



Dear Gordan: I would try to deal only with reputable sellers. eBay, I believe, has a ratings system and you have power sellers and so forth. Try to find someone who has a steady stream of cell phone parts, someone who's a reputable, long-time seller and doesn't appear to be a fence. eBay doesn't tolerate that kind of stuff if they can find it.

I would also do a reasonable amount of due diligence in terms of research. But at the end of the day, you can't completely guard against that unless it's a serial-numbered item. I wouldn't say never buy anything on places like eBay, but I would try to use some common sense and judgment.

I used to say I had a bad gut feeling. Then, a pastor friend of mine told me not to call the Holy Spirit a gut. It's not a gut feeling; it's God's spirit — listen!


via www.courierpress.com/business/local/dave-ramsey-couple-go-on-financial-bender_76644139

Helping someone drunk on debt

Dear Dave: My wife and I really got serious about your plan. We even sold our house to become completely debt-free. Now, we're trying to help my mom and dad. They liked your plan at first, and even taught Financial Peace University (FPU) at their church. Then, everything changed. They went out and leased a new car, bought another one on payments, and picked up a bunch of credit cards. They're trying to tell us that you really do this stuff too. How can we help them?   — Michael


Dear Michael: What you're describing is so inconsistent it's hard to grasp. I mean, how do you go teach FPU and then come back and claim Dave uses credit cards and does all those other dumb things? How do you do that then go lease a car and buy a new car and argue against what you've been teaching in a class? I don't know. But I do know that I don't mess with any of that stuff!

They're not really asking for your opinion. So, I don't think they can be helped until there's some kind of an opening. It's like the adage: "Those convinced against their will are of the same opinion still." I'd just tell them you're on different pages about this stuff. Let them know you love them, but that you're in complete disagreement on this topic and you're not going to argue about it with them.

There are always things you disagree about in families from time to time. But the truth is they went on a financial bender. When they wake up with a hangover, you might be able to help them, but right now they're drunk. They're financially drunk. They're buying everything in sight, and they're rationalizing it and justifying it.

Just pray for them, love them, and be in their lives. Continue to do what's smart, and try to avoid arguments. See where it goes from there. Maybe, when they sober up financially, they'll ask for some help.

— Dave

Looks can be deceiving specially when buying things on debt

Buy a home only when you can afford it

DEAR DAVE: We’ve made an offer on a house we really like through a first-time buyers program. Now, after looking over our budget and debts again, my wife and I are having second thoughts. We haven’t signed or turned in any paperwork yet. What do you think we should do? — Craig


DEAR CRAIG: I wouldn’t go through with the deal. I advise people to be debt-free before buying a home, because you want a home to be a blessing, not a curse.

Home-ownership when you’re broke is never a good idea. And basically, that’s the situation you’re describing. You have debt, and you’re trying to squeak into something with a first-time buyers plan. The translation? You have no money. 

Everything that can go wrong will go wrong. That’s Murphy’s Law, and he’ll move into your spare bedroom along with his three cousins — Broke, Desperate and Stupid.

Get your debts paid off, build up an emergency fund, and save up a good down payment before buying a home. I know that’s not the popular answer, but it’s the smart one.

Tough times call for tough measures

DEAR DAVE: My wife and I are thinking about selling our home. I was recently let go from the military due to downsizing, and I’ve begun a job in real estate but things are starting slowly. My wife brings home about $3,500 a month as a teacher, and the only debt we have is our house payment of $1,616 a month. I was given a $35,000 severance package, but we need some advice to help bridge the financial gap. Any ideas? — Erik


DEAR ERIK: Having little or no income is a lot harder than a variable income situation. Your wife is bringing home good money, but at the moment your house payment is almost half that amount. Are there some things you can do on the side while you’re getting your real estate business going that will create income? If you could make even $1,000 to $2,000 a month, it would change the picture entirely. You guys would be able to keep your home and have a little breathing room while you get your real estate career off the ground.

Looking at it from a long-term perspective, if you’re selling a bunch of houses a year or two from now, you’re in the clear. You could easily stay in the house. But if you don’t find extra income while you build your business, if you’re not willing to work extra hard and sacrifice in the meantime — even if it means just delivering pizzas — then you probably need to sell the house.

It takes about six to nine months to start making a living in the residential real estate business. So look at it this way: the more houses you sell, the less time you spend delivering pizzas. All this really hinges on is how badly you want a career in real estate and how much you guys want to keep your home. If you want it enough, you’ll do what it takes to get there. And for the time being that’s going to mean supplementing your income with something on the side while you grow your real estate business.

Buying a new car for business

DEAR DAVE: I’m self-employed, and I travel about 30,000 miles a year in my van. I’m three payments away from having the vehicle paid off, but it has 170,000 miles on it.

 
Do you think it would be a good idea for me to buy a new van and have the tax advantages that would go along with it?
— Doug


DEAR DOUG: There are two things you can do on taxes when it comes to your automobiles. You can straight-line depreciate them, which is what you do with expensive vehicles, or you can write off the mileage. That’s a good idea if you drive a lot. The thing is, you get the mileage whether you have debt or not.

Let’s say you bought a $25,000 van. If you depreciate that over five years, that’s $5,000 a year. If you made $65,000, and take $5,000 from that, you’d pay taxes on $60,000.
If you didn’t have that, you’d end up paying $1,250 in taxes. In other words, you’d be spending $25,000 over five years to save $1,250 a year on taxes. That’s a trade I don’t think you want to make.
 
Remember, too, that you basically destroy whatever you drive. You have to think of your vehicle as overhead. So, you’re going to destroy a $25,000 van or a $5,000 van all in the same period of time. 

As a businessman, which would you rather destroy? 
The answer is whatever is the least expensive and gets the job done.