‘Super stupid and crazy’: This nurse from Nashville borrowed $48K for her fiance’s truck — after borrowing $25K to fund her custody battle with her ‘crazy ex.’ Dave Ramsey responds

Ramsey and co-host Rachel Cruz were sympathetic to Ashley’s situation until she revealed she’d signed for a $48,000 auto loan to buy a truck for her fiance — despite her ongoing struggles with debt and court fees.

“In the whole story that you told us that has a lot of tragedy and sadness, this thing then jumps up as super stupid and crazy,” Ramsey said.

Luckily, he spots a quick fix to her financial problems.

Crazy situation

Ashley and her ex-husband adopted their son in 2019 but the marriage fell apart the next year. Since then, they’ve been fighting over custody of the child — which can get expensive.

Family attorneys who specialize in such cases can charge anywhere from $250-$300 an hour, according to Thumbtack data. However, the total cost could be much higher when fees and other expenses are considered. Ashley says she has incurred $20,000 to $25,000 in legal fees from two court appearances so far and doesn’t think the battle is over yet.

To finance her fight, she borrowed money on a line of credit. She also has other debt — $25,000 in auto loans for her car and $9,000 in credit card debt.

She wants to get into a position where, as Ramsey describes it, the “next time crazy ex comes along, you can punch him in the nose with a lawyer.” Not being in that place has caused Ashley a great deal of anxiety and depression, she says.

Unfortunately, she’s made her situation more challenging by expanding this debt pile with a new auto loan for a $48,000 truck for her fiance. She doesn’t count this as her own since he pays the monthly payments. However, co-host Rachel Cruze doesn’t agree.

“I know he takes care of it, but if he doesn’t it’s on you,” she tells Ashley. Ramsey then jumps in, adding, “And so you’re carrying this around your neck — you feel it between your shoulder blades; you feel the weight of it.”