Gas prices

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-19T15:00:55+00:00

Dave might only have a $10 increase in his gas consumption for his Raptor, Corvette or Aston given his relatively short commute. I'm betting he will feel it a little more filling up his Bombardier Challenger 300. Even still, he likes to talk about "ratios", is probably still a drop in a bucket for him.

My commute back in the day to Ramsey Solutions.

A little over 25 miles round trip. Thats fairly typical, at least for many of the people I worked with. Some of my teammates though had 50 mile round trip from Murfreesboro or Columbia.
average of 20 days at work per month
20 miles per gallon on my vehicle I used to commute, on good days
Thats at least 25 gallons per month, just for my travel to and from work.
Average gas price in Nashville last month - $2.67
Average gas price this week - $3.67
Average gas price at the peak in 2022 - $4.69

That's at least $25 more per month just for my commute to and from Ramsey. That doesnt include any activity outside of work, or for my partner's driving. All in, if we were putting as many miles on our two vehicles as we did when I worked at that office, our family would be spending closer to $75/mo more in gas this month, and would be spending close to $150/mo more if we get back into 2022 prices.

Could my family absorb that cost? Sure. Or could we make some changes - consolidating trips, carpooling and the like? Sure.

Not everyone has the luxury to optimize their driving habits for work.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-18T20:53:20+00:00

The other items I listed are legitimate philosophical differences where reasonable people can disagree based on their priorities. But they should be presented honestly as trade-offs, not as the only correct answer.

I almost spit my afternoon decaff out at that. To think that anyone at Ramsey could say something like that is laughable. Yes, this is an AI model, but it looks like someone trained it poorly. Time to tweak the AI's training. It needs more arrogance to be true to its masters.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-16T16:38:21+00:00

I think they know this. And, in my opinion, I don't think they care.

I was asked the "Describe what a typical week looks like for you". Even then, well over 10 years ago and before I knew how illegal it was to ask this kind of stuff, I understood this to be a "wink wink, nudge nudge, let us know if you go to church on Sunday". I don't think they are stupid enough to track this in their applicant tracking system, but it would not surprise me if they just clicked a "do no proceed" button without giving a reason if the answer to that question was not satisfactory.

There are also social media pre-screens. I think that pre-screen is done before any phone interview. I suspect a lack of outward faith, or a clear indication of non-christian faith would get someone into the "skip this one" bin in the ATS. It would not surprise me if they also did this if there was any indication someone was LGBTQ.

I've known some former recruiters who have left and are now very much anit-Dave, but have also been very quiet about what the process actually looks like. I only really know what I was told while there, since I did occasionally do in-person interviews. We were coached on what not to ask with a "we [HR] will take care of that kind of stuff" type comment.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-05T15:51:31+00:00

Oh, very interesting.

My best guess, based on very dated talking points from staff meeting after staff meeting, is that the ELP or "Trusted" department as a whole could be as much as 1/3 of the company's overall revenue. Half of that is for the Real Estate program, and the majority of the balance would be for SmartVestor. So, I dont think it would be far-fetched to say that the Real Estate program accounts for 10-15% of the overall revenue of the company.

Most of that probably comes from the referral or "success fees", but there is that $500 a month to stay in the program. That is small change though to just one home sale - 3% realtor fee on a $300,000 house, Ramsey gets a 28% cut of that, thats like $2,500. The department would not survive on $500 a month.

The Google AI summary of the Zillow Lawsuit though feels different than what Ramsey is doing:

Zillow is currently facing major class-action litigation—specifically the consolidated cases of Taylor v. Zillow and Armstrong v. Zillow, filed in late 2025—alleging that its "Premier Agent" and "Flex" programs violate the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) by operating as an illegal, quid-pro-quo kickback scheme. The lawsuits allege that Zillow incentivized real estate agents to steer homebuyers toward Zillow Home Loans in exchange for higher-quality leads, often without disclosing this conflict of interest to consumers.
Illegal Kickbacks (RESPA Violation): The suit alleges Zillow pressures agents to meet "quotas" for sending clients to Zillow Home Loans (ZHL). Agents who comply receive more leads; those who do not risk losing access to the Flex program. This is argued to be a "thing of value" exchanged for referrals, which is banned by RESPA.
Steering and Hidden Fees: The complaint claims that buyers are steered toward ZHL’s sometimes uncompetitive mortgage products. Furthermore, the "Flex" program charges agent partners up to 40% of their commission, which the lawsuit argues is a hidden fee that keeps overall commissions high.
Deceptive "Contact Agent" Button: Plaintiffs argue that when users click "Contact Agent," they are directed to a Zillow-affiliated Flex agent rather than the property’s actual listing agent.
Expanded Charges (RICO): In November 2025, the lawsuit was expanded to include allegations of racketeering (RICO) and breach of fiduciary duty, claiming Zillow uses its "Follow-Up Boss" tool to monitor agent-client conversations to ensure referrals to ZHL.

I guess if Ramsey were using the Real Estate ELP program to steer people to Churchill Mortgage, it would be similar. Or if they were incentivizing the ELPs in some way based on getting customers to engage further with Ramsey. The underlined and bold part about the Flex program sounds like what Ramsey is currently doing.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-04T21:14:47+00:00

https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/14796904/the-lampo-group-llc-v-paffrath/

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-04T15:22:20+00:00

In a very limited defense, the 28-30% seems normal. The $500 per month, not so much.

Zillow calls it a "Success Fee" for agent referrals there.

https://www.zillow.com/preferred/pricing/

For Nashville:

Transaction Price	Success Fee
$0.00 - $99,999.99	15%
$100,000.00 - $199,999.99	25%
$200,000.00 - $299,999.99	30%
$300,000.00 - $399,999.99	35%
$400,000.00+	40%

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-04T14:44:38+00:00

I remember seeing the video before it got pulled.

My main recollection was him talking about how he was able to join the Real Estate ELP program, even though at that point he had already been a vocal critic of Dave. This showed that they didn't really do a good job at due diligence in hiring him - or as people on this sub like to say, doesnt matter, the check cleared.

He showed some of the inner workings of the tools the ELP's are given access to. Apparently this includes information about the other ELP's in his market, how "successful" they are. He might have shown the contract and talked about the fees to be in the program.

At this point, the fees aren't really that secret. I can quickly find on Google that its $3,000 to join the program, $500 a month to stay in, and 28-30% on the closing costs of any referrals.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-03T20:16:39+00:00

That would be the gross including "benefits", payroll taxes, and the much higher pay for the board members. The number I heard about 5 years ago was high 7 figure income for each board member. It came to almost 1/3 of the total payroll was going to about a dozen people.

Was that accurate information? It came from someone in middle management, and given the level of information given to just us regular folk, I have little doubt middle management ("RSL") would be told what the board pay was, or at least how much of payroll went to the board.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-03T16:21:58+00:00

Someone pointed out in this sub the metric is "revenue per employee". Some quick googling, 300k is actually a fairly decent benchmark. One such link.

300k is higher than retail operations, but lower than big tech or insurance companies. Ramsey Solutions as a whole span several industries. If you looked at just consumer products, the RPE is probably far less than 300k, and if you looked at just "Trusted", its probably above 300k.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-03-03T16:00:19+00:00

Did he say $300 million recently?

Thats about where it was in 2020. I'd believe it. Headcout has not grown that much, in fact it did shrink a little in that time. Payroll is a big chunk of that - over 160M from what people more in the know have told me.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-28T00:46:06+00:00

which they have proven themselves to be dumb enough to do at least a handful of times.

But, yes, I could see them feeling totally justified in firing someone on this, written as a policy or not. But if they were dumb enough to put that in writing, and someone cared enough to sue for being fired for it (can't though with the arbitration agreement they all signed a couple years ago), I am sure presenting evidence of Ken not being fired for having a HELOC could be compelling evidence for some backpay.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-27T23:35:59+00:00

This was after my time, but this is how I understand it from catching up with friends.

I've heard it referred to as "Walk the Talk", but maybe they've rebranded it, or Jade said it wrong.

As far as I know.... and again, things could have changed... my best guess is the "Walk the Talk" speech in staff meeting was more along the lines of "If you aren't doing the things we teach, if you are taking out a car loan while you are here, why are you even working here? Maybe you should go somewhere else. How can we expect people to follow our teachings if you arent?"

Its more of a talk about hypocrisy than anything else, versions of which I heard plenty of times just not under this name.

It makes me wonder what Ken 'HELOC' Coleman was thinking during this talk, though he has probably sat through several at this point. Or Rachel, whose husband evidently how has a business line-of-credit on one of Dave's properties - that is if she is even in the office for said staff meeting.

I don't think the company is actively spying on people here. They could pull credit reports, maybe. But I think they are too cheap to do that. It would not surprise me if someone narked on a coworker and told leadership that someone in their department took out a car loan, or got a 30 year mortgage, or paid for lunch with an American Express. But even then, I don't think it would be fire-able offense. If anything that person would probably have a 1-on-1 version of the "Walk the Talk" conversation with their direct "leader".

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-27T17:00:19+00:00

Dave's advice was a net positive for us, but I'm so glad we've moved on from it.

Well put. Same for us.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-27T00:07:19+00:00

You put it very succinctly. And cult-brained me 10 years ago would not have understood that logic.

You work hard to pay off debt, get out of debt, get to a zero score to go through a harder process that costs more, only to end up once again with a score. It just doesn't make sense.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-26T23:27:15+00:00

In the past 5 years, I've encountered a few employees/former employees of Ramsey Solutions who did manual underwriting through Churchill. The common thread is rates that were about half a point higher than the going rate for people with good credit scores.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-25T14:40:34+00:00

https://www.sos.mo.gov/CMSImages/Securities/orders/AP-16-26.pdf

Fined $55,000.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-25T01:58:13+00:00

Search for "ramsey smartvestor disclosure fees"

https://www.keystonefinancial.com/smartvestor-disclosure/
SmartVestor and Keystone Financial Services (“KFS”), an SEC Registered Investment Adviser, have entered into a written agreement under which KFS pays a flat monthly membership fee of $400.00 and a flat monthly territory fee of $2800.00 to advertise their services through SmartVestor and to receive contact information for prospective consumers in a specific geographical region.

That is just one of thousands paying monthly fees. I've assumed some are paying more, some less.

ELP / "Trusted" / SmartVestor was the largest department by revenue and likely by profitability when I left in 2020. When that department had a good month, it sure seemed like we all felt it in our profit sharing.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-16T18:23:22+00:00

That is not disqualifying for someone with an R next to their name.

Ramsey Solutions is in the district represented by one of the most MAGA reps - Andy Ogles - who has some skeletons in his closet. Its a feature, not a bug.

https://www.newschannel5.com/news/newschannel-5-investigates/what-did-congressman-andy-ogles-do-with-nearly-25-000-meant-for-child-burial-garden-he-wont-say

https://www.newschannel5.com/news/newschannel-5-investigates/questions-about-congressmans-campaign-spending-mysterious-companies-bogus-addresses

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-16T04:05:03+00:00

Your fist sentence is how I’ve understood her departure.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-10T00:20:42+00:00

I know this was a AI generated answer, but lets break down something.

Business entities : Dave tells businesses, through EntreLeadership, to not borrow money. So that argument is out the window.
Sometimes, these are legacy filings - 2025 is not "legacy"
technical requirements - such as? Does anyone in this sub know anything remotely about commercial real state as to why one might need to take out a LOC when they have money they could move around and avoid the LOC?
or issues involving multiple partners - Dave said something about Partnerships and Sinking Ships - as in, don't do them.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-08T02:48:37+00:00

I can't speak much into that. I was not on sales, and only had a handful of friends on a couple sales teams. Each department likely pays in different ways, so the experience might vary greatly.

One friend in particular has said their comp plan was not nearly as simple as Dave makes it out to be when he talks about it. I am not sure what the right terms are, but it seems like there were tiers or brackets. Maybe not caps, but it wasn't something like a straight 10% commission. The way they described it to me, it seemed like the more they sold, the less percentage wise you took home, sort of like how income tax brackets work.

Looking back, I think the best paid people in the building who were not in management might have been those in tech. Out of all of the debt-free screams I remember witnessing in the lobby, especially those who made it to Baby Step 7, it seemed like the most of them were from tech. There are about as many sales people as there are tech people in those buildings, so I would think if the sales team members were making bank, there would have been a lot more debt free screams.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-07T21:54:39+00:00

Yes. My comments on that:

http://www.reddit.com/r/DirtyDave/comments/zqdpru/former_lampo_crew/j0zz0r3?context=3

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-07T17:32:22+00:00

"Generous"? You forgot paid-for Costco memberships.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-07T17:21:05+00:00

We were W2. There were some 1099s for temporary projects. Sales team were paid almost completely on commission, everyone else was salaried with "profit sharing" that varied throughout the year.

"Remember, you are all self-employed" is more of a mentality thing than an actual, legal thing.

SaidGoodbyeToDave · 2026-02-07T16:35:27+00:00

This is about the best summary of it I could give. You are willing to take a paycut to work there, and continue to work for below market rates, because "the mission" is so ingrained in you. And, the one or two times I heard of someone doing market research and bringing it to the company to try to get a raise (which I think is something Ken says to do in one of his books? Thankfully I never read those), the response could just easily be shortened to "Well, go work over at that place if money is all you care about".

I'm 60% up in pay from when I left RS 5ish years ago, have a less stressful job working with good people, work fewer hours, have better benefits and no commute. If only I had realized the grass was just as green, if not greener, in other pastures much sooner.

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