The Stupid Tax

No, I didn't just come up with that phrase. I stole it from money guru Dave Ramsey. A couple times a week people write in describing the dumb things they have done with their money. I thought the following was a pretty good (?) one.....

I Couldn't Get Home!

By Lonnie in TN

About 4 years ago, I was single and had a paid-for truck. I wanted to purchase a car to save on gas money and take on golf trips. My nephew and I looked online and found a 2003 Galant at Carmax that I wanted to look at.

We drove about 50 miles to Knoxville to look at the car (driving the truck with poor gas mileage). I loved the car and was offered a good payment (5 1/2 years at $307/month). I was hesitant until I realized that I didn't have enough gas to get home and didn't have any cash. My debit card was useless because I was broke, and my credit cards were maxed out. So, what did I do? I bought the car! Stupid with a capital $.

Now I am happily married and in Financial Peace University with my wife. We have paid off all credit cards, have an emergency fund in the bank, and should have both cars paid off by the end of summer.

This had to have taken some guts to write in about. But the truth is we have all done stupid things with money. To read more Stupid Tax stories, click on the Dave Ramsey link above or under "Our Favs" section. You can also read "We Did It!" stories such as this one where people have started getting a grip on their finances and are not letting money problems destroy their lives.