A Tax Haven Experience You Can Trust Since 1988

Category Archives: Dave Ramsey Tips

Heather Worrell Celebrates 25 Years in the Tax Industry with a Dave Ramsey Give A Way!

Heather Worrell, Enrolled Agent and owner of A Tax Haven, celebrates 25 years this January in the tax industry. She is also an Endorsed Local Tax Provider (ELP) for Dave Ramsey! In recognition of this special anniversary, A Tax Haven will be offering a Dave Ramsey Give A Way (Several Dave Ramsey Total Money Makeover Books & a set of Financial Peace University CDs)  to help others learn more about handling their finances and budgeting.  Current clients will be automatically entered into the drawing. All others need to  fill out the contact form on this site to be entered in the drawing.  Feel free to leave a respectful comment with a finance tip below. Send your friends to this blog at ataxhaven.org  for their chance to win! Drawing will be held March 29th.

Dave Ramsey Give A Way

Dave Ramsey Give A Way

And as Dave Ramsey always says, “If you live like no one else, later you can live like no one else.”

 

CONGRATULATIONS to our Dave Ramsey Give A Way Winners at A Tax Haven- March 2013:

Megan Ladd

Kenneth & Corita Meredith

George Soper

Phyllis Gardner

Josephine Nash

Jimmy & Derlene Montgomery

 

 

 

Dave Ramsey’s Seven Baby Steps

Dave Ramsey’s 7 Baby Steps:

 

Step 1: $1,000 starter emergency fund.

 

Step 2: Pay off all debts smallest to largest with the debt snowball. (Excludes Home)

 

Step 3: Fully fund your emergency fund to cover three to six months of expenses.

 

Step 4: Invest 15% of pretax income into retirement savings & Roth IRAs.

 

Step 5: College Funding

 

Step 6: Pay off your home!

 

Step 7: Build wealth and give!

 

*Remember: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

Lao-tzu, Chinese philosopher (604 BC – 531 BC)

What’s Dave Ramsey Say About Budgeting?

Dave Ramsey Budget Recommendations

The Four Walls- Priorities in a Budget:

1) Food

2) Shelter / Utilities

3) Transportation

4) Clothing

 

Budget Percentages Guidelines

(Multiply your total income by recommended % to see how you are doing.)

Food/Groceries-  5-15%  Include grocery stores, restaurants, and even those drive-thru windows or vending machines.

Home- 25-35%  Depending on whether you rent or own your home, this category consists of items such as rent/mortgage, repairs, property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, and even furniture.

Utilities 5-10%  Include electricity, water, gas, internet, phone, and trash pick-up.

Automobiles- 10-15%  Include auto insurance, repairs, license, registration, taxes, gas, and oil.  (If you are making car payments – include that in the DEBTS category.)

Clothing/Shoes 2-7%  Even though you might think this is more of a personal item, it really is a necessity.

Medical-  5-10%  This is a tough and frustrating category for most people, but it includes things like health insurance, disability insurance, doctor bills, and medicines.

Personal/Misc 5-10%  This category contains a lot of variety.  Examples include hair care, school supplies, life insurance, alimony, child care, subscriptions, pet supplies, toiletries, gifts, and other miscellaneous items.

Recreation-  5-10%  Don’t let life go by without having some fun. Live a little, but make a plan first.  Set aside some money for entertainment and vacation.

Contributions 10-15%  This includes places such as your church, non-profit organizations, and education foundations.  It does not include gifts.

Savings/Investments 5-10%  This includes items like your retirement, mutual funds, college savings, and even your emergency fund.

 (Dave wants you to be debt free more than anybody, but while you work on that he recommends:)

Debts 5-10%  Most Americans don’t like to look at this category, so get it paid off quickly.  Add up things like car payments, credit cards, and student loans.  Include everything you owe money on EXCEPT the house you live in.

[bigContact phones=on emails=on]