Dear Dave,
My dad and I have been having arguments over real estate and money. My wife and I are 33, and we have a rental property. We were trying to decide whether or not to sell the rental in order to pay down on our home. My dad has been very vocal about what he thinks we should do, and it’s starting to cause problems in our relationship. The two homes are our only debt, and we make $110,000 a year. We owe $132,000 on our residence and $80,000 on the rental. We could sell the rental for around $160,000. What do you think we should do?
Ricky
Dear Ricky,
I wouldn’t sell the rental today, but it’s definitely a strong consideration in the future. You wouldn’t realize enough from its sale to pay off it and your home at this point, so work aggressively toward paying down the mortgage on your home. Then, when you get far enough down that the sale of the rental would pay it off, go for it if that’s what you both want. You’re doing really well financially for a couple your age in San Diego.
Now, let’s talk about something else for a moment. I would love for you to listen to your dad for advice, but I would not be arguing with him about what you are going to do with your money. You’re a man. I don’t know if you just used the incorrect word there for how the discussion went down, but if not, I wanted to correct that as a boundary issue in your family.
Keep up the good work, Ricky!
—Dave
* Dave Ramsey is America’s trusted voice on money and business, and CEO of Ramsey Solutions. He has authored five New York Times best-selling books. The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 11 million listeners each week on more than 550 radio stations and digital outlets. Dave’s latest project, EveryDollar, provides a free online budget tool. Follow Dave on Twitter at @DaveRamsey and on the web at daveramsey.com.
