Hunter, a newlywed husband from Cincinnati, called into The Ramsey Show seeking advice on knocking out debt as a couple.
He explained that while he personally had no debt, his wife had student loans and a car payment. To limit their expenses, they live with their respective parents in different states, seeing each other only on weekends. Their thinking was simple: survive as “weekend warriors” while they eliminate the debt, then move in together and work towards buying a home.
But that plan drew immediate pushback from host Dave Ramsey, who said their financial strategy was undermining their marriage and could slow their progress in the long run.
“What you’re doing is unbelievably weird,” he said in a clip posted Jan. 7 (1).
Hunter says his wife has roughly $28,000 in combined student loan and car debt. He works part-time for a friend’s auction business while pursuing professional basketball contracts that pay as little as $1,000 to $3,000 a month. His wife has a full-time job.
He was expecting an overseas basketball contract, which prompted the couple to get married quickly, but the opportunity fell through. Afterward, the couple came up with the idea to stay with their parents as they work towards paying off debt.
Ramsey wasn’t on board with their plan. He argued that marriage requires daily partnership, not just shared financial goals. Living together might help the couple pay off debt faster by creating shared priorities and more consistent budgeting while strengthening the bonds of their relationship.
Read More: The average net worth of Americans is a surprising $620,654. But it almost means nothing. Here’s the number that counts (and how to make it skyrocket)
Living with parents as an adult is increasingly common in the U.S., particularly as housing costs climb and student debt remains high. According to the National Association of Realtors, 17% of homebuyers in 2024 were multigenerational households, up from 14% in 2023. (2)
For single adults, living with family members often means lower expenses, which makes it easier to save and pay off debt. But marriage can complicate things, especially when two people want to grow their own life together.
Leave a Reply