Who Is Dave Ramsey?

Dave Ramsey is a personal finance guru and media personality. At 26, Dave Ramsey earned a quarter of a million dollars a year and managed a $4 million real estate portfolio. Two years later he lost everything. Now, at 60, Ramsey is one of America’s most trusted sources for financial advice. His syndicated radio program, The Dave Ramsey Show, reaches 20 million listeners weekly across more than 600 radio stations, according to Ramsey’s website.

Ramsey is transparent about his conservative investment style. He encourages his followers against investing in individual stocks and instead recommends mutual funds with strong a performance history. His personal investment portfolio consists of four types of mutual funds: growth, growth and income, aggressive growth, and international.

Ramsey also owns a portfolio of rental properties. His real estate investment philosophy is based on acquiring properties without the use of debt financing. 

Dave Ramsey has come a long way since filing for personal bankruptcy in his early years. With his estimated net worth of $200 million, he’s proof that anyone can turn a bad financial situation around. Ramsey made his first million, lost it, and rebuilt an even larger fortune in a relatively short period.

Early Life and Education

Born September 3, 1960, Ramsey grew up in a household that instilled a strong work ethic. In his 20-minute documentary, Live Like No One Else, Ramsey tells the story of when he was 12 years old and asked his father for money to purchase a popsicle. His father replied, “You are old enough to get a job. That’s where money comes from.”

That conversation with his father inspired Ramsey to become an entrepreneur. He printed 500 business cards at the local print shop for his first venture: a lawn care business. Throughout his school years, he had a number of other businesses, one of which sold leather bracelets. Ramsey said his early business ventures taught him valuable lessons like customer service and the importance of keeping your word. 

Three weeks after turning 18, Ramsey passed his real estate license exam. He used his commissions from selling property during college to help pay his tuition. As a child, he had been exposed to the world of real estate, and in his book Dave Ramsey’s Complete Guide to Money, he explained, “My parents were in the real estate business, so it has always been a big part of my life.”

Notable Accomplishments

Real Estate Success and Failure

After college, Ramsey began flipping properties, securing financing through family connections at local banks. By 26, his real estate portfolio was worth $4 million, and his net worth surpassed $1 million.

His initial success was short-lived, and he ended up filing for personal bankruptcy protection at 28 in 1988, due to a significant lender—to whom he owed $1.2 million—being acquired by a bigger bank. The bank demanded Ramsey pay the entire debt off within 90 days. Shortly after receiving his first demand notice, another bank called his $800,000 worth of notes. Ramsey managed to pay the majority of the debt down, leaving $378,000 outstanding.

Financial Counseling Career

Ramsey’s fall from grace led him to Christianity. He began to read the Bible and discovered that “God’s word has a lot to say about money.” In the documentary, Ramsey says that one day after church, a man going through financial difficulties asked him how he survived his money troubles in the past. He agreed to help the man and his wife create a financial plan for their life—and so began Ramsey’s financial counseling career.

Ramsey started a personal finance counseling company called The Lampo Group. His money management class started with 37 students, but membership grew to more than 350 students after a few years of operation.

Author and Radio Host

Following the success of The Lampo Group, Ramsey began to co-host a personal finance-focused radio show, The Money Game with his friend, Roy Matlock, and published his first book, Financial Peace. He leveraged his growing radio audience to help sell it.

Ramsey later launched a spin-off called The Dave Ramsey Show, where he provides financial advice to callers from across the country.

As an evangelical Christian, Ramsey uses biblical principles to teach his followers how to improve their financial conditions. He encourages listeners to avoid debt because the Bible verse Proverbs 22:7 states, “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is a slave to the lender.”

The Bottom Line

From a young age, Dave Ramsey recognized there was value in a day’s work. As a child, he started several different business ventures to earn money. His entrepreneurial ventures helped him become a millionaire by the age of 26. A few years after reaching the million-dollar net-worth milestone, Ramsey filed for personal bankruptcy.

Today, Ramsey has built a business empire centered around his financial experiences and Bible scriptures to teach smart money-management practices. Millions of Americans look to Dave Ramsey for guidance on achieving financial security and wealth.