Dave Ramsey Philosophy + Buy & Hold Strategy = ........Reality???

[Rj J.]

Hey BP'ers,

I'm a huge fan of Dave Ramsey and his philosophy of being debt free yet I also have goals of owning rental property and cashflowing $10,000/month from rentals.

I would love to create a strategy of buying rental unit(s) (2, 3, or 4 family homes) and using the cashflow to pay down the mortgage so that at some point in time the property is paid off. What do you think of this strategy? Is it realistic?

I would love to hear if anyone has incorporated the Dave Ramsey philosophy to their life while investing in real estate.

Thank you!!!

[Matt Motil]

Dave Ramsey is awesome. Robert Kiyosaki is awesome! Everything is awesome! (sorry, I have kids and we watch lego movie a lot)

Dave Ramsey detests debt... but so do all the other investors when you compare apples to apples. Debt for your own personal life is bad. It makes you a slave to whatever it is that you're paying on. Debt for business is leverage and, additionally, asset protection. When it comes to debt, Robert Kiyosaki advises to make sure that personal debts are small and if you do take on debt, make sure someone is paying you to do so. There is risk in debt, but you are paid accordingly to manage that risk. 

Purchasing rental property in cash with no debt is doable for sure, but it completely eliminates the advantages that real estate provides as an investment and equity growth vehicle.