But...Dave Ramsey went bankrupt!!

[Account Closed]

Hi everyone, I'm a newbie to BP and REI and very excited to get started! One of the biggest concerns (or misunderstandings) I have holding me back is the argument over whether to carry long-term mortgages on rental properties or paying them down ASAP. Paying off the loans quickly seems counterproductive to me if you're trying to accumulate mass amounts of properties in just a few years. Like many people, I started my pursuit of early financial freedom by following Dave Ramsey's financial advise. But all I keep thinking about is Dave's story of how he went bankrupt when his bank was sold to another, resulting in his having to pay back millions of dollars (bank notes) within one year! YIKES! What am I missing here? How can I avoid this same scenario down the road?

Being a single guy my goal is to house hack my current home and then purchase one new investment property every year via house hacking. I plan to utilize FHA loans for purchasing future REIs and then after one year refinance with 30-year fixed conventional loans. Am I on the right track here? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone!