With great regret, The tractor must be sold.

[Birdhunter1]

I tried that route of two older trucks that were paid for and maintain them myself rather than have a truck payment.
One truck, an F250 was 20 years old with 135,000 miles that had some lack of maintenance issues and the other was a 10 year old Ranger with 170,000 miles that I had owned and maintained since it was new.
It turned out to be parts bills for things going wrong or from trying to stay ahead of potential problems PLUS any time I put in was dang near getting to be a payment a month and a part time job.... on top of taking care of the horses and other equipment.
So I sold both trucks, found a very low mileage 3 year old truck and get the same day to day mileage I had with my Ranger, better towing mileage than the old F 250 and more of a fixed cost.

I like Dave Ramsey's ideas but I don't find them set in stone. In my case the money I was saving was costing me time that I could have been enjoying my wife, kids, horses, hunting or just loafing on the couch (which is rare). There's alot to be said for saving money, but there's alot to be said by saving time when all you have to do is turn a key and go......

 

[ultrarunner]

Yep... I really don't have a plan either... it is something I do think about and had talked with a lawyer about setting something up for my nieces and nephews... that went over like a lead balloon...

The father of the girls was adamant... said that last thing his daughters need it thinking someone is giving them a house...

I then asked what about my work life insurance with I named them all... works out to 20k per kid... they were all right with that but nothing like a house, property and heavens not a collector car...

 

[MossRoad]

Yep... I really don't have a plan either... it is something I do think about and had talked with a lawyer about setting something up for my nieces and nephews... that went over like a lead balloon...

The father of the girls was adamant... said that last thing his daughters need it thinking someone is giving them a house...

I then asked what about my work life insurance with I named them all... works out to 20k per kid... they were all right with that but nothing like a house, property and heavens not a collector car...

Kinda odd. I guess I can understand. If we croaked today, our kids would be set for life financially VS if we croak in our 90's after spending most of it. However, by then both of them will be in there 60's and shouldn't need a financial safety net. My guess is if we did croak today, and they got a large inheritance, both of them would invest it and use the monthly proceeds to pay their student loans and living expenses for the rest of their lives and continue their career paths with a load off their shoulders about "what if I lose my job?" If they ever have kids, I'm sure they'd invest it for education and college for their kids. If they don't have kids, I'd bet they leave it to some social services agency and animal care functions, as one is involved in social work, and the other on the path to becoming a veterinarian. Neither one of them would live even close to their means, let alone spend the capital investment. We've talked about it with both of them many times over the years. I think they observe how their grandma and grandpa live, how we live, and figure it's a pretty good model for how they should handle their finances.

At least that's what I hope. :laughing:

 

[CADplans]

Well,, BFJ, in my opinion, you did not error in buying a tractor,, you simply bought the WRONG tractor.

I have owned a large tractor since 1982,, and even to this day, I have never spent over $8K for a tractor.
Most of my tractor purchases have been partially, or completely financed by the sale of a previous tractor.

A man can not live without hobbies,, you just need a hobby you can afford.
My first tractor was a 404 IH purchased in 1982 for $3,000,, it was sold for $4,500 one week after I purchased the 584 IH.
(my JD 4105 cost $8K, the most expensive tractor I ever purchased, My 584 IH was purchased 20 years ago for $5K)

I could not buy a $20K tractor,, it just is not in my blood,,,
If any of my machines have shiny paint,, that is because I painted it,,,

 

[HillStreet]

Good on ya for taking the 'long view', the media tends to push "the youth of today" as being over-spending, live in the moment, "I want it now!"... well, you get the gist. You're simply re-grouping to secure a solid foundation.

Very sensible.

The time will indeed rapidly pass and then you'll have that new(er, to you, if that's your choice) tractor.

And of course you'll "stick around"... a 455 is still a tractor. :thumbsup: Besides that, I'd have to say that 3/4 of the advice that I give on TBN is stuff that I've learnt from the good people on TBN.

(I can't do it all, ya'know...)

Well said.

 

[HillStreet]

I modeled my financial methods after a friend that was about 5 years older than me. When I got out of the service I noted that he would go to work with a packed lunch and a thermos. If you gave him $5 on Sunday, he probably had $4 left on Saturday. We talked one day and he said this: My lunch is good, I like coffee from the thermos, and I don’t spend $8. For lunch. He said his money saves up fast and when it accumulates, he pays cash for what he wants. He said be patient. I have lived that way for a long time and it is comfortable after a short while.

 

[4570Man]

So he doesn’t eat lunch? I don’t usually eat breakfast except on Saturday so I do eat lunch. I usually eat fast food with a $5 plus tax budget. I also buy gas station drinks with a dollar limit. That’s not a big money leach since it’s 80 cents at the grocery store. I try to keep a case of water around but that’s not a good option. I’m not drinking scalding water or frozen water.

 

[sdquick]

I applaud your efforts to get out of debt and I think Dave Ramsey has a good plan and solid principals. Like others have said, some variation on his plan with the same discipline to the goal is good as well.

As far as leaving your estate, it is too bad that you are in that situation. Most of us try to build for ourselves and our families. I hope to be able to help grand kids with collage and other expenses and maybe even leave some for the great grand kids. Please do not leave it to the state! you could find a good charity or maybe even surprise a good hardworking young couple from your area.

A couple of interesting inheritance examples: Bill Gates and his wife have designated a small amount of his money for each of his kids with almost all of it going to his charity. The founders of the company that I work for are very rich but most of the grand kids have graduated from collage and worked for the company or else ware for a while. I commented that I thought this was admirable to a friend of the family once. They laughed and said that the founders (grandparents) have a trust for the grand kids that pays for their schooling with enough money that it encourages them to attend and graduate from school and also that they have to work because the trust money does not start to get release to them until they are in their thirties. That had given them a good view of the real world and some understanding of needs vs wants and expenses vs investments before getting money.

 

[Deere Dude]

My take when in late 20s to my 50s was that if I wanted something big or small, from a car to a table saw or some kind of tool, was to wait a year before I would get it. By then most of the time I wouldn't want or need it. I just saved. Obviously sometimes there are immediate needs, but this worked for me.

Then before I knew it I became older and now if I want something I just go down and get it but I find my old saving habits are hard to overcome. I still use coupons and shop sales and definitely surf the net looking for deals.

 

[ultrarunner]

Kinda odd. I guess I can understand. If we croaked today, our kids would be set for life financially VS if we croak in our 90's after spending most of it. However, by then both of them will be in there 60's and shouldn't need a financial safety net. My guess is if we did croak today, and they got a large inheritance, both of them would invest it and use the monthly proceeds to pay their student loans and living expenses for the rest of their lives and continue their career paths with a load off their shoulders about "what if I lose my job?" If they ever have kids, I'm sure they'd invest it for education and college for their kids. If they don't have kids, I'd bet they leave it to some social services agency and animal care functions, as one is involved in social work, and the other on the path to becoming a veterinarian. Neither one of them would live even close to their means, let alone spend the capital investment. We've talked about it with both of them many times over the years. I think they observe how their grandma and grandpa live, how we live, and figure it's a pretty good model for how they should handle their finances.

At least that's what I hope. :laughing:

My Step Grandfather had a sign on his desk... "Prosperity is earning a Buck and needing only 99Cents"

My family is never one to buy on credit if you don't count a fixed first mortgage... it was just ingrained from Depression era living...

Don't know much about Ramsey but when I have heard him speak it really seems nothing more than common sense with positive reinforcement with Baby Steps... a term he uses...

There are many different philosophies and some are definitely American as opposed to my friends in Germany and Austria... who will think nothing of spending a lot of money on their homes... homes in the family for hundreds of years... they see it as a true investment buying the most efficient etc...

We tend to be more short sighted... and this goes for consumer spending too... plenty of my friends have the attitude money is to enjoy and that last thing they want to do is depart this world with a large bank account left behind... and they sure do enjoy life... but the downside is a widow that is now faced with real financial decisions with a mortgage in their 80's on top of losing 60% of the family pension income... very sad for those left behind.

My brother feels the kids... all teens need to earn and work and having a windfall early in life has a good chance of destroying that ambition...

Probably what I see the most is renters that come into a windfall...often a settlement or inheritance... often quickly gone through instead of used for life changing things... education, home ownership, retirement, etc...

AS with most things... a plan is a good place to start.