Page 29 - Cornerstone Connection Magazine - Volume 22 - Issue 5

Keep the House lot longer to get those few simple transactions taken care of if
you don’t have a will in place.
Dear Dave, The other thing you’ll always want to have in your will
My wife and I are on Baby Step 2, and the only debt we have package is a healthcare power of attorney directive. This in-
is $90,000 in student loans. We bring home about $90,000 a cludes things like who’s going to make medical decisions for
year. In addition to this, we have almost $60,000 in equity in you if you’re unable to make decisions for yourself. As a part
our home. We also have a toddler, plus another baby on the of this, you’d want to fill out the paperwork on whether to
way. Do you think we should sell the house, and rent for a few disconnect life support systems in the event of a coma. These
years, while using the money from the sale of the house to pay things aren’t fun to think about but doing it will take a huge
down our student loan debt? burden off the people you love. And all this becomes even
Chris more important if you have children, because the state will
step in and decide what happens to them if you don’t.
Dear Chris, Having these things laid out ahead of time, and sharing
No, I wouldn’t sell your home in this situation. You’re going them with your family and close friends, is a very thoughtful
to be out of debt in a couple of years or so, anyway. You’ll just and mature thing to do for those who would be left behind in
have to lean into it, and make sure you’re living on a strict, the event of your death. They’re already going to be distraught
written budget. I’m talking about no vacations, and no eat- and grieving, and you don’t want to make it worse by leaving
ing out. You shouldn’t see the inside of a restaurant unless them with a lot of important, difficult decisions to make.
you’re working there. And the new kid’s crib may have to —Dave
come from a garage sale, but so what? Mine did, too. Want to
know something else? I survived without having a rich kid’s
nursery, and so did my kids. This article was reprinted with permission from the Lampo Group, Inc. 2020. For more
There’s a price to be paid anytime you decide to get seri- financial advice, follow Dave on Twitter @DaveRamsey and on the web at daveramsey.com.
ous about gaining control of your money and cleaning up a
financial mess you’ve made. You’re going to have to work like
maniacs and have no lives for a while. That might even mean
picking up a part-time job at night or on weekends. You’ve
got a tough couple of years ahead of you, but I think it’s worth
the tradeoff.
Keep your house.
—Dave

Why Do I Need a Will If I’m Young?

Dear Dave,
Why do I need a will if I’m still young and haven’t acquired
a lot of wealth?
Laura C A P E R N A U M F
M O N B R E A D
Dear Laura, O M B R E A D A R
In a case like yours, you don’t need a complicated will. But Answers to U E A R G A
M
T
E
you do need an inexpensive, basic will. The larger and more N O S I T W E L V E W
T
S
complicated your estate is, the more you’d spend on estate Crossword A M E E I N
planning and a will in order to ensure everything is properly Puzzle on L I F E U C V T
addressed—and to keep the government’s hands off every- N M P A I S E A
thing. page 30 U S N
Let’s say you’re in your early- to mid-twenties and single. E V E R L A S T I N G L I F E
You have a car and a bank account, and that’s it. In this kind M
of scenario, it’s going to be easy to work through your estate. U
But it’s going to take your parents—or whoever’s left—a whole R A I S E H I M U P
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