My Husband's Vending Machine Business Put Us $1M In Debt In 3 Years. He Drained All Our Bank Accounts, 401(k) And Home Equity

A worried man in glasses reviews a bill with a calculator and laptop on a desk. (Credit: Image via Shutterstock/ fizkes)

Adrian Volenik

Sun, September 20, 2026 at 10:01 PM GMT+3 7 min read

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Three years ago, her husband left a stable job to start a vending machine business. Today, the couple is nearly $1 million in debt, their retirement savings are gone, their bank accounts are empty and they have virtually no equity left in their home.

Emily, a mother of four in Akron, Ohio, recently called "The Ramsey Show" and shared that her husband believed borrowing aggressively was the way to grow the business.

"He followed the [author of 'Rich Dad Poor Dad'] Robert Kiyosaki way and kept telling me, 'You got to get into debt to make money,'" she said. "I strongly disagreed with [it], but he kind of just kept going anyway."

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A $1 Million Bet That Didn't Pay Off

Her husband apparently bought too many vending machines and micro markets too quickly. The business is now struggling to operate because it doesn't have enough cash for inventory, despite having two people running it.

The couple owes just under $1 million, according to Emily. Some of that debt is tied to equipment, but her husband also used credit cards, loans and a home equity line of credit to fund the operation.

Even their retirement money went into it.

"He drained our 401(k) to do it," Emily said. "There's no money."

The couple originally bought their home for $185,000. They now owe about $250,000 on the mortgage and another $200,000 through a HELOC, or roughly $450,000 altogether. Emily estimated the house is worth slightly less than that.

She said she didn't fully realize how bad things had become until a credit card was declined. When she checked their finances, she discovered the bank account was empty.

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Meanwhile, the vending business itself may be worth only around $450,000 to $500,000. Much of the proceeds from a sale would have to go toward paying off debt associated with the machines, leaving little to address the couple's other debts.

Both spouses have now returned to regular employment. Emily earns $25 an hour working 30 hours a week, while her husband recently started a job with a $21-an-hour base salary selling insurance.

They also have four children, ages 13, 12, 10 and 6.

Bankruptcy Isn't the Biggest Problem?

Emily's husband wants to file for bankruptcy. She isn't convinced, telling personal finance personality Dave Ramsey that she believes they have a responsibility to repay their debts.

Ramsey worked through the numbers and suggested that selling the business and home could eliminate a substantial portion of what they owe. The remaining unsecured debt might then potentially be negotiated instead of immediately turning to bankruptcy.

But the hosts were more concerned about what the ordeal had done to the couple.

"You're done. I hear it in your voice," co-host Rachel Cruze told Emily. "You're pretty pissed. Because you've had to go back to work."

"I'm very done," she replied.

"I was 28 years old and I was the stupid husband," Ramsey recalled losing everything himself after becoming heavily indebted in real estate when he was younger. "I was him."

He encouraged the couple to seek marriage counseling and for Emily's husband to take responsibility and begin rebuilding trust. "You are very disgusted right now, and you should be," Ramsey told her.

For Ramsey, whether the couple files bankruptcy was almost secondary. He said he wanted "90% of this discussion" focused on the couple and their relationship and only "10% bankruptcy or not."

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This article My Husband's Vending Machine Business Put Us $1M In Debt In 3 Years. He Drained All Our Bank Accounts, 401(k) And Home Equity originally appeared on Benzinga.com