Comments on: Living Mortgage Free: The Joy of Life Without a Mortgage

By: Robert Lockard

Robert Lockard — Thu, 25 Aug 2022 15:57:52 +0000

I just paid my mortgage off at the start of August 3, 2022. It really is such a wonderful feeling. I got a 30-year mortgage in February 2013 at a 3.25% interest rate, and I just put lots of extra money toward principal. By the end, I was paying an extra $1,600 per month. Next month will be my first time paying absolutely nothing on my house. I have no other debt, so I’m free to just keep all my money, invest, and do anything else I’ve been wanting to do for a long time.

My wife and I couldn’t be happier. That’s another thing that is important to be able to get out of debt: being on the same page as your spouse. My wife was totally willing to follow my lead on paying off our mortgage. If she had been a big spender, this would have been impossible. We’ll do our best to raise our four children to be wise like your wonderful dad did.

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Fri, 25 Jun 2021 03:09:37 +0000

In reply to Raegan. Thank you for sharing your story! Paying down the mortgage provides so much flexibility. It was one of the main reasons we focused on dumping our mortgage too!

By: Raegan

Raegan — Sat, 19 Jun 2021 20:19:37 +0000

Good for you! It’s great living mortgage free. We paid off our mortgage early last year at age 43 and I don’t regret it one bit. The math obviously says to invest instead but owning your own home is priceless! Now I’m in a work-optional position and my husband is planning to retire at 50, God willing. I have no regrets on the path we chose.

Raegan

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Wed, 09 Jun 2021 04:32:10 +0000

In reply to Vivian. Hi Vivian, Thank you for your comment. I agree that millennials are in a much more difficult situation than previous generations. Have you watched Money Explained on Netflix? The episode on student loans provided a great graphic displaying the impossible costs faced by millennials when compared to previous generations. As you mentioned the numbers do not add up in a favorable way for those trying to raise kids and own a home.

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Wed, 09 Jun 2021 04:25:55 +0000

In reply to Zaphod. Thank you for your comment. We considered the option you mentioned, but ultimately decided against it. When we made the decision to pay off our home we were in a very different financial situation with a completely different frame of mind. With more money in the bank the urge to live mortgage free is not as strong. I think your solution can be a good one!

By: Zaphod

Zaphod — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 19:05:40 +0000

Note from a Ph.D. economist: While the goal of living mortgage free sounds nice (I also harbored such childhood fantasies) – it is a financially unsound decision in today’s low-interest rate and higher expected (real) inflation environment for the foreseeable future. The most financially sensible course of action is to have as large a debt as possible on your house that allows the lowest possible interest rate for 30 years, then keep saving your cash in the growing stock market to let compound interest do its long-term magic. Over time, your loan’s real worth will shrink due to inflation and your house’s as well as your saved stock portfolio’s worth will increase.

For my FIRE goal, I plan to save the cash equivalent of paying off my mortgage in a post-tax cash brokerage account AFTER maxing out on pre-tax and post-tax retirement savings – but not ACTUALLY give into the unwise albeit emotionally appealing idea of paying it off.

By: Vivian

Vivian — Mon, 07 Jun 2021 05:45:28 +0000

I feel like we could achieve FI if we didn’t live where we do. You can’t buy a single family home short of a million dollars and renting a 3bd/2ba is 4-6k/mo. We bought a 2bd/2ba bc that’s all we could afford at the time without PMI (not to mention we offered more than the list price to secure the place due to competition). Now we have kids and I really want a bigger place. We could sell but we wouldn’t be able to afford a bigger place either. Renting is also way more expensive than our current housing expenses.

It’s really frustrating as we are not big spenders. My husband can’t leave his job right now so we can’t just move somewhere else. Another major issue is the cost of decent childcare is about one mortgage per child. I’m sure we’re not the only millennials in this situation. I just feel like you can’t have FI and kids these days.

By: Manoj

Manoj — Fri, 06 Nov 2020 15:26:20 +0000

In reply to One Frugal Girl.

Hi,

My kids already know the first thing they have to do when they buy a house is to pay it off as quickly as possible!!

It’s was hard getting a mortgage again, but I had a plan to pay a 30 year mortgage off in 18 months. So far my wife and I are on track to get it done.

Thanks for the reply.

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Fri, 06 Nov 2020 14:28:17 +0000

Thank you for sharing your story. I love that your dad is your hero! I hope that you are able to pass on the same lessons to your two children. There is no greater feeling than paying off that mortgage. Was it hard to get a mortgage again after paying off your first house? Now that I’m mortgage free I never want to sign another mortgage document again! April of 2021 is not very far away. Congratulations on hitting the mortgage free milestone and for nearly reaching the mark again!

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Fri, 06 Nov 2020 14:24:04 +0000

In reply to kinmuti. I guess we will have to agree to disagree. My definition of living mortgage free means living without a mortgage. While NY may have high property taxes many states do not. We pay just over $200 a month for property taxes on one of our houses. It's not $0, but $250 is definitely cheaper than rent or mortgages.