Oregon women are “working hard” to retire by the age of 80, but Dave Ramsey says her plans need to be rethinked

Abigail, a 70-year-old woman from Portland, Oregon, says she “works very hard to make it possible for her to retire at the age of 80.” The solar company has offered to lease the farmland, so the goal may be within reach. Still, she doesn’t know if the transaction is a financial lifeline or a responsibility.

she I was invited to the Ramsey show In search of advice, the company said it wanted to lease 45 acres of property to build a solar farm and would like to provide payments of around $4 million over 40 years.

If accepted, Abigail could retire in a few years, but there are potential pitfalls.

“I saw these transactions,” said Dave Ramsey, a personal financial personality. “If they go bankrupt, obviously this lease will be cancelled and then you have a lot of junk on your farm.

Ramsey warned that if he accepts the lease, he would effectively place a lien on the property, but Abigail said it was worth $3 million today.

She technically owned the land, but it was tied to the deal for decades. Future buyers must accept lease terms that complicate potential sales or inheritances.

Ramsey wondered if this was worth it. “You don’t like my answer, but I don’t tie my $3 million assets together for that and my entire backyard is full of this.”

He offered another way: “I’m going to sell ten acres and use that money to live.”

Abigail’s husband doesn’t support renting or selling the land, but Ramsey responded dullly to this. “You work at age 70 and are worried about how you’ll eat at age 80. Your husband is trying to sell a portion of his land because he didn’t work to save enough money when he was young and to serve his wife’s food.”

Ramsey said he should talk to real estate agents and land surveyors and find ways to sell 10 acres to generate $1.5 million. It would give her money to retire without disturbing the remaining property or without grieving her heirs on a long-term lease.