Has anyone here gone through FPU?

[Wilmabird]

Curious if anyone here has gone through FPU (Financial Peace University) aka The Dave Ramsey plan. 

I handle the finances in our family after discovering that I'm married to an emotional spender (even when there was no money to spend- hello credit card debt!), and we really needed to get on something to make us talk about money, so we took the course not too long ago.  It has been much easier to talk about our budget without me sounding like a financial tyrant, but I would really like to start steering him towards the MMM mindset now.  When we were still dating, we talked extensively about working our asses off the first decade or two of our careers so we could retire early and travel the world.  Well, we are a decade in and are no better off than we were as poor college kids.  Has anyone successfully made the FPU -> FIRE transition?

[ROY2007]

My wife and I took FPU through our church about 2 years ago. Found MMM about 6 months later. I think Dave is great at motivating people to get out of debt and get a handle on their money if they haven't managed money well in the past. I've learned a lot in the past year and half from MMM and others so now FPU seems pretty basic. If you're having trouble selling Dave's message to your spouse, in my opinion, you're going to have a real tough time trying to convert them to Mustachianism.

[1967mama]

I have been doing this program from Dave Ramsey with my teens:

http://www.daveramsey.com/store/kids-teens/home-school/foundations-homeschool-student-text/prodFOUHOMESTUTEXT.html

I've learned a lot from it, but I agree with ROY2007 that it is pretty basic. Its a great program to help steer your kids away from society's debt mindset. My last teen (now 17) who did the program has opened a Qtrade account and we chose 3 Vanguard funds based on The Canadian Couch Potato recommendations. He is putting almost all of his earnings from his part time job into this account. So very proud of him!

[lemonlime]

I found MMM about two years ago but was in debt, so I couldn't apply a lot of the ideas about investing and getting to FI which for me is the exciting part. I introduced MMM to my husband, who was interested and started reading the blog, but I felt like I was bearing all the burden of our finances myself. So we did FPU, and it made a big difference for me in terms of financial planning and responsibility being a shared burden. It also helped us communicate more effectively about money and our dreams for the future. Most significantly, and here I'm echoing what many others have said before, FPU really helped us continue moving forward on our debt pay off, we're now about a year out from being debt free and able to move hard core into investing and seeing the 'stache grow.

I think giving your spouse more responsibility in regards to handling money is a big component in getting them to see what is going on in your lives and move towards MMM ideas. It was for me at least. My husband thought MMM ideas were nice, but I didn't feel like he was actively involved until he was actively involved in handling our finances, which is now a shared responsibility.

[Wilmabird]

If you're having trouble selling Dave's message to your spouse, in my opinion, you're going to have a real tough time trying to convert them to Mustachianism.

He was fine with FPU for the most part.  He just had the same reserves I did about paying off stuff by small amount vs interest rate.  He went to all the meetings with me and actively participated, though I could tell it pained him to be there.  He really just doesn't give a crap about finances.

[Wilmabird]

So we did FPU, and it made a big difference for me in terms of financial planning and responsibility being a shared burden. It also helped us communicate more effectively about money and our dreams for the future. Most significantly, and here I'm echoing what many others have said before, FPU really helped us continue moving forward on our debt pay off, we're now about a year out from being debt free and able to move hard core into investing and seeing the 'stache grow.

I think giving your spouse more responsibility in regards to handling money is a big component in getting them to see what is going on in your lives and move towards MMM ideas. It was for me at least. My husband thought MMM ideas were nice, but I didn't feel like he was actively involved until he was actively involved in handling our finances, which is now a shared responsibility.

Maybe this is where I'm making a mistake.  We went thought FPU and it mostly explained why I was so concerned about being in debt and why I was making getting out of debt such a priority.  Since then, other than trying to follow our budget, my husband hasn't taken on anymore responsibility with the finances.  I tell him when to pay his credit card, and he does, but not unless I remind him it's due.  I don't know how else to get him to take on more responsibility for it.  Any suggestions?

[ROY2007]

I still listen to Dave's podcasts at work and I think he gives good advice to husbands and wives that are looking for their spouses to take more responsibility with the financial decisions. This clip from a caller might give you some good ways to approach a conversation with your husband.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0pm_4R5ze8

[Wilmabird]

I still listen to Dave's podcasts at work and I think he gives good advice to husbands and wives that are looking for their spouses to take more responsibility with the financial decisions. This clip from a caller might give you some good ways to approach a conversation with your husband.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0pm_4R5ze8

Thank you!!!  That's pretty much exactly what I'm dealing with.

[lemonlime]

I agree with listening to the podcasts for callers in a similar situation.

With my husband, I just told him that I was feeling alone in bearing this burden, that I wanted to be a team. So I said I think you should make a budget and then we can go over it together to be on the same page. He knew that I was hurting, he took me seriously, and he got all the info and made a budget, and now we use the spreadsheet and budget he made. But a big part of getting to this point was me appealing to his role as my husband and teammate, that I needed his support as husband and teammate, it was an emotional appeal about our relationship. And his response was to that emotional appeal to our relationship, about his investment in our relationship and making our marriage work. And it worked. Full disclosure: I was pissy at first because I babyishly took his changes as a criticism. It wasn't a criticism, it was just a different brain processing things, and I had always done it by myself and never had feedback before this switch. We both actively manage the spreadsheet now and talk about it regularly.

[celticmyst08]

I watched the video series when I was 18 or 19. I was starting to develop some less than ideal financial habits, so my parents paid me $100 to do the FPU course. I ended up really enjoying it and got super interested in finances. I discovered MMM several years later.

[Kaikou]

I am starting a class next week. Excited to start my debt free journey. I have been listening to Dave for 2+ years.

[1967mama]

Congrats, Kaikou! Hope it goes well!

[CU Tiger]

My husband and I took FPU. It was very good, not because we were in a lot of debt (we were not) but because it helped us learn to talk about money and money goals without fighting.

We learned a lot of good information, but the best thing was sitting together and talking about money without frustration. We are now in what DR calls baby step 7, and I feel like MMM has more utility for me now, but I got a lot of good out of FPU.

[Bob W]

10 tears in?  Me too.  It sucks to be on different pages.  Just cover your own ass and learn to say that's nice but no.  You'll retire in 10 years.   They'll be working forever?

[Syonyk]

He was fine with FPU for the most part.  He just had the same reserves I did about paying off stuff by small amount vs interest rate.  He went to all the meetings with me and actively participated, though I could tell it pained him to be there.  He really just doesn't give a crap about finances.

So, here's the thing: If you're in debt, and arguing with the Dave Ramsey Snowball approach "because it's more efficient to pay off the highest interest rates first," but you're still deeply enough in debt that this even matters, you're missing the point.

If a purely logical approach to finances worked, you wouldn't be in debt - possible exception a mortgage, *handwave.*

His method works because it goes after the emotional/reward side of your brain, and if what you're doing isn't working, try that instead.  It's something different, and more frequent dopamine kicks early on in the process.

I think Dave Ramsey/FPU are a good introduction to a "Hey, you don't have to spend your life deeply in debt" view of finances.  I disagree with him on some things, but they're the things that matter when you've got a lot of money in the bank and no debt, which isn't really his target area.

It's also a great intro to money management for people who suck at it.  If someone I know is having problems with their finances, I offer to cover their fee for FPU, on the condition that they attend all the courses.  It's a really good "101" class on money.

[Bateaux]

I'd never heard of Dave Ramsey when I started following the same basic plan.  I listened to Bob Brinker and read lots of financial books.  Same facts apply.  Attack the smallest debt first and keep attacking till it's gone.  Maxed the 401k since 1993.  Didn't open a Roth IRA till 2000.  At the same time was expecting 50k a year from a company pension in retirement.   That evaporated in 2012 with 20 years of service.   Many of my coworkers saved little expecting the pension.   In their 40s and 50s they realized it was not going to be there like they'd planned.  Now they will work till old age.  Never rust and a corporation.   
I listen to Dave all the time now but, never did FPU.  I've wanted to call in during one of the millionaire sessions.   Pretty boring story.  We saved our way to wealth.

[eyePod]

Dave Ramsey is a great starting point. Reasonable, achievable goals. It can get you and your partner on the same page.

I also REALLY REALLY recommend YNAB. It's changed my wife and I's life and outlook on finances. The beginning was a little tough, but man we save so much money now and really plan ahead. It's so much easier to say "oh, we're going to a wedding in May and we're both in it and we will do bachelor/bachelorette parties. Let's start saving $100 a month now" vs our old method of "oh shit we just spent a ton of money on that weekend!"

Before anyone gets into it, I'd recommend really watching the videos and checking out the forum. They have a lot of great resources!

[Apples]

Dave Ramsey is a great starting point. Reasonable, achievable goals. It can get you and your partner on the same page.

I also REALLY REALLY recommend YNAB. It's changed my wife and I's life and outlook on finances. The beginning was a little tough, but man we save so much money now and really plan ahead. It's so much easier to say "oh, we're going to a wedding in May and we're both in it and we will do bachelor/bachelorette parties. Let's start saving $100 a month now" vs our old method of "oh shit we just spent a ton of money on that weekend!"

Before anyone gets into it, I'd recommend really watching the videos and checking out the forum. They have a lot of great resources!

+1  DH and I actively discuss and make budgets.  I actually do all the finance-related things, but we track a few key areas on Mint so he keeps his toes in the water.  Those are groceries (which he buys), gas (also him), each of our spending money for the month, and our weekend fun money.  Oh and our house budget, though since we pretty much spend 75% of that in the spring for our garden, it's a little out of whack for what Mint can do for us.  DH and I haven't fought about money, but we've had lots of "oh you're in a wedding so we need to not spend our weekend money this month so you can go on that trip" or "well this house thing broke and our house budget is full, where do you think we should take the money from?" discussions.  It's about planning and problem solving, not reacting emotionally to individual spending decisions like "why did you spend so much on xyz groceries this week!" etc.  So I still carry most of that burden, but we share responsibility for decisions on how to spend our money.

Also, we want to save a down payment before having kids, and it's going to tighten our budget.  By both actively creating and discussing budgets, I'm not the financial tyrant who won't let him spend any money, which I know happens to some couples.  It works.

[EricP]

We learned a lot of good information, but the best thing was sitting together and talking about money without frustration. We are now in what DR calls baby step 7, and I feel like MMM has more utility for me now, but I got a lot of good out of FPU.

It will be a long time before I get to Baby Step 7 because paying off a mortgage is a bad thing from a FIRE perspective.  Technically, I'm still in Baby Step 2 because I have a $15k loan at 0.5% interest and it makes absolutely no sense to pay it off, and a loan on my former house that I'm now renting out.  Dave would probably hate me because I'm all about the whole "using debt to build wealth" thing.  Now I understand he got burned way back when, but I'm much less leveraged than he was and could cash flow the house if my renters fell through.

[iamlittlehedgehog]

DH and I went through FPU a week after we got married, my parents insisted on it and paid for the course.
Then we had the worst fight ever. But we have paid off almost 4k in debt in 4 months. By the end of November we will have no car or credit card debt.

Here is how I see it: Dave is meant to break down the consumerist walls and make you realize you need a lifestyle change (not just a "Money Makeover" a full on-get-used-to-beans-and-rice lifestyle change)

MMM then takes this fresh new creature and molds it into super-saving smart-investing powerhouse.
 

[EricP]

Here is how I see it: Dave is meant to break down the consumerist walls and make you realize you need a lifestyle change (not just a "Money Makeover" a full on-get-used-to-beans-and-rice lifestyle change)

Not really, though.  Just a "You're broke, live like a poor person temporarily."  And then once you're debt free (except the house) then going back to consumerism for the most part.  Except for new cars which require a million dollar NW to be "allowed" to buy and it's been a million dollars for the past 20 years and will continue to be a million dollars for the next 20 despite inflation having radically changed what a million dollars was/is/will be.

[iamlittlehedgehog]

Here is how I see it: Dave is meant to break down the consumerist walls and make you realize you need a lifestyle change (not just a "Money Makeover" a full on-get-used-to-beans-and-rice lifestyle change)

Not really, though.  Just a "You're broke, live like a poor person temporarily."  And then once you're debt free (except the house) then going back to consumerism for the most part.  Except for new cars which require a million dollar NW to be "allowed" to buy and it's been a million dollars for the past 20 years and will continue to be a million dollars for the next 20 despite inflation having radically changed what a million dollars was/is/will be.

I did qualify that statement as a personal opinion, your mileage may vary. Our course leader (teacher, whatever they are called) went  off track for a few weeks because he was a firm believer in modest living and our course mates, including us were in hair on fire debt situations. I don't think anyone paid much attention to his investment tragedies or calculations.
DR is a great starting point for most of the population - I would never suggest his long term strategies but without him DH and I would not have been receptive to the idea of FIRE and the life MMM advocates.