Feb 7, 2026
Florida homeowner Sandy called The Ramsey Show from Orlando with a dramatic problem: Her husband of 23 years wants her out of the home they recently bought together.
She blames herself, saying she pushed him and their daughter to move from a neighborhood where they’d lived for 15 years — one she said is going downhill — into a new one.
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It’s been a costly decision. At their former home, their monthly mortgage was $1,800 a month mortgage at 2.7% interest. The mortgage on their new home is more than double: $4,000 a month at 6% interest. Plus the home needs serious renovations to better suit the couple's work-from-home needs.
Sandy told Dave Ramsey and Jade Warshaw that she “kind of freaked out” after the move, and her husband “got angry and basically said, ‘You need to leave. I’m so angry with you over this.’”
Sandy tearfully added that she’d leased a place to rent after her husband demanded she move out but she isn’t sure she can afford the $2,750 monthly rent.
“This isn’t about the debt. It can’t be,” Warshaw said. “And it’s not about the house. That may have been a catalyst.”
Ramsey agreed.
“I don’t give a crap about your house,” Ramsey said. “The only thing I want to save is your marriage … That’s more important than a house.”
When financial problems reveal trouble in a relationship
Ramsey told Sandy that she and her husband need a marriage counselor.
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Sandy said they had started seeing one, but the counselor was out of network, meaning more financial challenges as they had to pay out of pocket.
Ramsey wasn’t having that as an excuse, as Sandy revealed that she made $180,000 a year and her husband made $250,000.
“If you don’t get your marriage straightened out, you’re going to go bankrupt,” he said.
“’Cause you guys are making stupid-butt choices left and right based on a broken marriage, not based on anything else.”
Purchasing a home is often the biggest financial decision that people will make in their lives.
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When that decision turns out to be a bad one, it makes sense to be upset, anxious or fearful.
But for a relationship to break down completely over one bad financial decision is a sign that there may be other issues at play.
However, if bad financial decisions accumulate, it can strain a marriage. An often-cited study from 1997 found that financial problems were the second leading cause of divorce (2).
According to a survey conducted by Ramsey Solutions, 41% of couples who have consumer debt said they argued about money, and that it was the thing they argued about the most (3). Of couples who were debt-free, 25% said they argued about money.
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Foster financial compatibility
Given how common it is for finances to cause conflict, it’s important to aim for financial compatibility in your relationship.
Financial compatibility can mean being on the same page about things like savings goals, spending habits and major purchases. It can also mean complementing your partner, and making up in the areas where the other may lack (4).
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The other area that couples can focus on when it comes to finances is communication. Being able to openly discuss money, and work through differences of opinion without having the conflict blow up into a full-blown fight are key skills for couples.
If you aren’t able to talk frankly with your partner about financial decisions, or you find yourself constantly fighting about money, you might take the advice that Ramsey gave the caller, and seek out a counselor who can help you build your communication skills.
If your communication skills are strong, it is more likely that your relationship will better weather financial ups and downs.
As Ramsey told the caller, “You’re putting the house story at the front of the story. It’s at the back of the story.
"The front of the story is you and your husband. If you solve that, you’ll find a solution to the other things.”
Article sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.
The Ramsey Show (1); Psychology Today (2); Ramsey Solutions (3, 4)
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Rebecca Payne has more than a decade of experience editing and producing both local and national daily newspapers. She's worked on the Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail, Metro, Canada's National Observer, the Virginian-Pilot and Daily Press.
