Dave Ramsey says: Personal, business debt is all the same

Dear Dave,

Do you view personal debt and business debt the same way? I have about $210,000 in farm loans that are mostly tied up in land I rent to farmers. It’s the only debt I have, and the rental prices supply me an income of about $200,000 a year.

Anne

Dear Anne,

Your debt required you to personally sign for it, right? So, it’s all personal debt. The law is going to treat you exactly the same if you don’t pay a Small Business Administration (SBA) loan as the law treats you with an unsecured personal line of credit. You’re still going to get your butt sued, and they’re still going to come take your stuff or garnish your wages. It’s debt!

The only way it’s personal debt versus business debt is in your mind.

If I’m in your shoes, I’m going to live on as little as I can and pay this off like I was trying to pay off a house. If I made $200,000 a year on investments, and everything was paid for except one of my investments, how quickly would I pay that one investment off?

Two years. In your situation, surely you can live on $100,000 a year!

—Dave

Related

Messy primaries plague both major political parties, causing chaos and confusion in the midtermsBeaches closed and sandbags filled as Tropical Storm Bertha approaches the Gulf CoastKimberly Yee leading Tom Horne in bitter GOP primary for Arizona schools chiefRain moves in north of Phoenix, flash flood warning issued for Cave CreekTrump will attend the dignified transfer of 4 US service members killed in the Middle EastAs the president touts Trump Accounts, some families are still waiting for baby’s $1,000