Grant Cardone Slams Dave Ramsey's Anti-Debt Approach As 'Middle Class' Thinking – Reveals Elon Musk's Strategy To 'Climb to the Top'

When it comes to money, opinions are a dime a dozen, but when two financial giants clash, it's hard not to pay attention. Dave Ramsey, the popular financial guru, is known for preaching a debt-free lifestyle, but not everyone buys it. Enter Grant Cardone, the real estate mogul who isn't shy about sharing his thoughts on Ramsey's approach. 

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"Dave's good for people who want to stay in the middle class," Cardone said bluntly on an episode of "The Rich Somers Report." His words were sharp, but he didn't stop there. Living without debt might be safe for Ramsey, but it won't get you to the top. "To climb to the top, you need to embrace debt – the right kind, of course," he added with a knowing smile.

This isn't the first time Ramsey's advice has been scrutinized. Younger generations have criticized his views on everything from housing to child-care costs, but his hard line stance on debt gets people talking. Even some of Ramsey's fellow baby boomers are beginning to question whether his anti-debt philosophy is a relic of the past.

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Cardone, who's three years older than Ramsey, couldn't disagree more with the idea of avoiding debt altogether. For him, debt isn't just a necessary evil – it's a powerful tool. "At Cardone Capital, we always use debt, but we're smart about it," he explained. "We never overleverage, keeping our debt in the 65% range."

And Cardone isn't alone in this thinking. He quickly points out that some of the world's wealthiest entrepreneurs, like Elon Musk, don't shy away from borrowing. "Goldman Sachs isn't worried about debt. JP Morgan isn't worried about debt. And Elon Musk definitely isn't worried about debt," Cardone laughed. 

He's not wrong. Musk has borrowed billions to buy companies like Twitter, taking out loans against his shares to fund his other ventures. It's the same story for Jeff Bezos, who borrowed $2 billion to fuel Amazon's growth during the dot-com bubble. For these industry titans, debt isn't something to fear; it's a way to seize opportunities.

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So, what's the big deal about borrowing money? According to Cardone, it's all about what you do with it. "Debt used to grow a business or invest in something that appreciates is ‘good debt,'" he explained. Cardone believes the right kind of debt can be a game-changer, whether buying a house, funding an education, or expanding a business.

But not everyone sees it that way. Dave Ramsey, for one, has a very different story. In his early days as an investor, Ramsey used debt to finance his real estate deals. However, after a close call with bankruptcy in the 1980s, he swore off borrowing for good. 

He's a staunch advocate of living debt-free. "Debt always equals risk, and it's always dumb," Ramsey wrote on his website. "While your calculator may say leveraging debt can help you get rich faster, it doesn't consider the risk. But when you pay cash for everything, you don't have to worry about that risk."

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Ramsey's views echo those of another financial heavyweight, Warren Buffett. "You really don't need leverage in this world," Buffett once said. "If you're smart, you're going to make a lot of money without borrowing." 

Even billionaire Mark Cuban has chimed in, likening paying off debt to making a smart investment. "Whatever interest rate you have – if you pay off that loan, you're making that percentage back. It's safer than picking stocks or real estate," Cuban told CNBC.

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