April 7, 2015 • Page 2 shop online at www.missourivalleyshopper.com Dave Says Breaking the News By Dave Ramsey Dear Dave, My parents are going through a divorce, and money issues are a big part of the problem. My dad bought several rental properties and poured money into them. Then, he lost them to foreclosure and isn’t making a lot in his new, commission-based job. How can I, as a 25-year-old kid, tell him that his career choices aren’t working? –Ryan Dear Ryan, I’m sorry to hear about your mom and dad. Divorce is never an easy thing, no matter how old you are. You’ve probably heard lots of old sayings about how winners never quit. Well, in many cases those are false statements. Winners and successful people quit all the time; they quit doing things that aren’t working. This Just a theory… doesn’t have to mean that you quit on a dream, but it could mean you change the methodology you’re using — especially if it’s not getting you anywhere. Part of being a successful entrepreneur is having the ability to recognize when something isn’t working and change it. You sound like a smart, caring young man, but there’s little chance that a twenty-something with very little life experience will be able to convince his father of these things. I mean, he’s probably in his fifties, right? Plus, he’s going through a divorce, and it sounds like he’s broke and emotionally worn out. You’ve got a great heart, and I’m glad you care enough about your dad to try and help him. But in this scenario, I think he needs to talk to someone like a pastor, or even an older relative or good friend closer to his own age — a guy with a little more life experience. Maybe you could talk to someone like this and explain what your dad is going through. Ask them to talk to him, and see if he’ll open up to some new ideas. In the meantime, just be there for him and show all the support you can. You’re a good son, Ryan. —Dave Dear Dave, Let’s say you have $1 million in the bank. Why would you take out $300,000 to buy a house, instead of just making a 20 percent down payment and keeping the rest of the money in mutual funds to make more money? If need be, I could still pay off the house. –Alex Dear Alex, Interesting question. Okay, I’m game. The spread that you’d make between even a highinterest rate mortgage — let’s say six percent — and mutual funds at 11 percent or so, is about five percent. And that’s assuming nothing goes wrong, and you can get your mutual fund out if needed. What you’re talking about is theory, and what I’m talking about is actual life. In your theory you’ve left out two major issues: paying taxes on the mutual fund, which would make your yield less, and risk. You’ve compared a zero-risk investment with a risk investment, and you shouldn’t do that. You must factor in risk so you can accurately compare one investment to another. Every time you pay off a mortgage, the bank no longer charges you interest. That’s zero risk compared to a mutual fund, which does have risk. Remember, if your house was paid for you wouldn’t borrow $300,000 against it to invest in mutual funds! —Dave *Dave Ramsey is America’s trusted voice on money and business. He has authored five New York Times best-selling books, including The Total Money Makeover.The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 8.5 million listeners each week on more than 550 radio stations. Follow Dave on Twitter at @ DaveRamsey and on the web at daveramsey.com. Spring is just around the corner! If it’s time to replace your worn and tattered American flag, please remember to dispose of it properly. We have a convenient drive-up drop box located at the front of our facility. We will dispose of them in a proper ceremony at a later date. Drier Than Average April Expected Guiding and serving families with compassion and trust. 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The drought outlook for the month ahead also shows likely expansion of drought across much of the state in the month ahead, said Laura Edwards, SDSU Extension Climate Field Specialist. “This latest outlook projects an increased probability of drier than average conditions in South Dakota, Nebraska, and parts of surrounding states,” Edwards said. “This is not good news for us, given that we are already going into the growing season with a moisture deficit from the last several months.” She did add that one benefit of dry conditions in the early growing season is that planting and field preparation for spring planted crops, such as corn and soybeans, can be completed faster and more efficiently without saturated soils or ponding, as has been seen in many recent years in the eastern part of the state. “There is some concern already that winter wheat has had some frost damage following the brief thaw in February in the western and central counties,” said Dennis Todey, SDSU Extension Climate Specialist & South Dakota State Climatologist. “For the wheat that did survive the warm period, now the lack of precipitation is a growing concern.” He added that there was also winter wheat that did not emerge last fall n dry april, Page 11