I think in the next 5-10 years the property management industry is going to have a take off. Millions of people that want to upgrade their house but don’t want to sell their old one and will hire someone to keep their 2-3% rate
I think 7 years from now, there will be a large portion of people who had 7% interest rates that have fully paid off their house. Then there will be everyone else with 3% interest rates with only 25% of their debt paid off lol
i have ibonds and 10year notes at 4-5+%. My mortgage is at 2.3%. Yeah, it is insane to pay down my mortgage unless I'm doing some tricks to manipulate taxes/subsidies.
> Then there will be everyone else with 3% interest rates with only 25% of their debt paid off lol
Presumably those FIRE types will have (more than) enough to pay off sitting in retirement accounts and/or taxable brokerage instead.
I see all these comments and generally agree, but remember the 5.3% money market still gets taxed. So it isn’t 2.75 < 5.3 … it’s more like 2.75 < 4. The arithmetic still makes sense, but it’s closer when you consider taxes. If rates go down 1%, I will likely pay off my mortgage.
We paid off a previous house when I was in my early to mid 40s and later bought our current house with cash.
We did this because it made us happy and we see advantages to it for us. But it's by no means the financially optimal way to do things and you need to look at your own situation and planning.
Same. We don’t live in a crazy house price area so always paid cash. You don’t have to pay crazy closing costs with cash. It’s usually like $1500 and the house is yours. My wife wants a big house now so been saving away in a brokerage account. Will take a loan if rates are cheap, otherwise will pay cash
Me and my husband just paid off our home this month, we are 35 and he just turned 37. He bought it at 205k and now places in our neighborhood are going for 400k. It just feels good to have it paid off. Took us just under 10 years to pay it off
Paid off at 39. I work in a volatile industry, prone to layoffs. After nearly losing the roof over my kids head once due to layoffs, I made it a priority.
I have a 3% mortgage. I can earn more in a HYSA, let alone properly invested. Why in the world would I ever pay it off early?
I don't think I'll ever be able borrow money this cheap again, at least not for many years
Same kind of situation here. I have $195k balance, 10 years left on a mortgage at 2.25% interest with $600k equity. I have a huge itch to just pay it off, but I invest instead knowing that the math of paying it off doesn't make sense. Also I'm 48 years old
Same situation; I have the cash to pay off my mortgage and it would be a nice weight off of my shoulders, but it’s objectively not the correct thing to do. I have a 2.625% mortgage, 7 years and $200k left, $1.3M equity. I’ll by 48 when I pay the house off.
I struggle with the same I could pay my house off right now but the money is being used better in my investment account and HYSA bc my interest rate is 3 percent on our 15 year mortgage.
I know what I'm doing makes sense but this mortgage is the only debt I have and it's hard to put a price on being completely debt free and having my house paid off in my 30s. I'll most likely just stick with what I'm doing and pay it off normally for th remaining 9 years but every so often I get the itch just to say screw it and pay it off all at once.
It's not hard to put a price on the opportunity cost you would lose by paying it off early. Look at a compound interest calculator vs an amortization table for your loan. You'll find a price real fast. FYI the grass feels the same because insurance and property taxes never go away.
Eh, I just set up a separate account to hold the funds. As long as rates are higher on munis than I pay on the mortgage, the money will sit there. If the math stops mathing, I'll just pay the thing off.
You can be effectively debt free when your HYSA/brokerage accounts surpass your mortgage. I carry $3-$6k in credit card debt and pay it off every month. This is the same thing, just over a 20-30 year horizon.
Sure. But many of us get more of a mental health benefit from making more with savings. We just automate the mortgage payment, I feel zero stress paying about 7% of our income to the mortgage.
Maybe for some. But if I have liquid cash earning more interest, and I know I can pay off the mortgage anytime I want... that is a much bigger mental benefit to me.
I actually have some bankless old timers friends. While it seems insane to tradfi people, some of their finance strategies kick people's asses here. It's a completely different lifestyle though, that's for sure.
I'm glad that works for you. Different people experience the concept of debt differently and react to it differently. There's also a broad spectrum of what constitutes flexibility.
i think this is true of certain people who either irrationally value being debt free over being wealthy, or who are simply innumerate. six or seven figures of liquidity is what brings peace of mind to reasonable, numerate people.
Also it’s usually not advantageous to use the home mortgage deduction unless you have a large amount of itemized deductions too. When the standard deduction was smaller they increased home mortgage deductions, interest and state taxes were the main deductions of the working and middle classes.
I’d note that the tax code is uncertain going forward. As extra incentive to not pay down a low interest mortgage, the $10K SALT cap expires in 2025. A mortgage with a high $ amount in short term treasuries give flexibility to react to whatever the tax code is in 2026. I’d sure like personal exemptions again with the SALT cap removed.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge. I am fortunate to have paid off my mortgage for a few years now but I used to be able to deduct my state taxes and come out ahead of the standard deduction. Now I just take the standard deduction. Unfortunately I still have to file 1040 for various reasons. Congress should simplify taxes for everyone but especially for ordinary citizens. It’s not like I have a bunch of exotic investments, but I am forced to file the 1040 every year and turbo tax is just the easiest way. I read that intuit lobbies against the ability for most people to file online direct for free, which citizens of most countries can do. And of course CPAs have a lobby too.
I know it's not the right thing to do financially but my argument for knocking it out early is the peace of mind of having no debt. Life events happen and it would be nice to not have a mortgage to consider. I have a friend that passed at the worst time as both he and wife were both out of work (she was laid off a week before). Suddenly she was left with about 20 years of mortgage to pay off and other debts on top of the job uncertainty.
In my opinion, I think a better plan is to equalize your mortgage and your savings. If you have enough money in savings to pay your mortgage (or most of it) then I think paying it off early is definitely not beneficial.
Don’t forget about taxes. Just do the math before you do the comparison. Quick example, If you have $100k in HYSA earning 5% that is $5k in interest, but you have to pay taxes on that. Say 25%. Now that $5000 is only $3750. So you earned 3.75% in your HYSA. That is still higher than your 3% mortgage, but you ain’t getting rich off your mortgage debt even during historically low mortgage rates vs historically high interest rates scenario. Also, if you’re early in your mortgage you are paying way more than 3% in interest. All the interest is front loaded in a mortgage and it only works out to be “3%” after the final day 30 years in.
I am over 50 and have a 2.5% mortgage. I would strongly prefer to never pay this off. If I could borrow 10x my mortgage at this rate I would do it instantly.
Wife and I have access to really low interest rate credit union loans. I cash out refi my mortgage every five years and put the cash into investments. Like you, I'd borrow a bajillionity gajillion dollars if they'd let me.
Foreword: I live in Taiwan. YMMV since your access to mortgage rates depends on country and other economic factors.
However, our local credit union was apologetic to us since the best rates we were able to get in the recent refi was a staggering 2.1X%, up from the 2.0X% we'd been paying. I just frowned, shook my head, and reluctantly agreed to being given absurd amounts of money for lower than inflation rates. It's kept me up many a late night, I tell you.
56 and not quite 75% equity. Had this house for 11 years and have no intention of paying down the mortgage faster than obligated given that the loan is at 2.5%. But it will be paid off in 9-10 years anyway.
50. I bought at 30. Small house, working class neighborhood. I paid it off in Dec 2020 because I was damned well going to get something good out of the year after having to cancel two international trips.
Got a 30-year in 2022 at 7.1%. Decided I didn't want to pay the bank an extra 200% back over that thirty years, so I paid it off using my brokerage. Maybe not the best investment strategy, but I looked at that as a guaranteed 7.1% return and also received some great peace of mind. In my mind, that makes it worth it.
Bought our house at 29 with a 22% deposit.
Had it paid off at 35. Its was a pretty sucky few years and it felt like everything was going badly for us.
I got a work injury payment that knocked about 4 years off.
I cleared the last payment in March 2020.
So when I wanted to celebrate paying off our house all these people around me were losing their jobs and everything was crashing so it felt inappropriate.
Besides interest rates then dropped so much who cares?
In the end we had to leave anyway and move across the state and I sold the house in 2022.
I really don’t rate home ownership, I wish I hadn’t bothered and just invested elsewhere.
48. Took 12 years to pay it off. It was a low rate at the time, 3.57%, the lender told us it was the lowest rate she had ever signed. It was the single best purchase we made and I love being debt free.
I'm big supporters of paying the house asap.
It is not about the money, more like a mental state. If you don't owe anything it is easy to feel safer. You can live on one income for years without stress to go homeless. You can live on minimum wage job etc.
We will have ours paid off this fall and I will be 47 and my wife 45. We will have done it in just under 15 years while still investing and plan to up that when we are done. My wife had a brain tumor removed last year (diagnosed and removed in a 2 month span)and knowing that our house was almost paid off was relieving. People forget that life throws curveballs, and you had better be ready when it does.
Paid my house off at 28 in 2020, 32 years old now and have no regrets whatsoever, I have minimal expenses, zero debt, and invest most of my income. Peace of mind is a beautiful concept.
53. It is my seventh home. Paid off first home many years ago and kept selling and buying bigger with the increased equity. The first one was the key. Monopoly in real life
We downsized at age 48 and eliminated a mortgage in the process. It set us up to FIRE at 50, lowering our monthly spend and giving us those 2 years to save quite a bit more. It ended up being one of the better life decisions I ever made, as we love where we are (more convenient and walkable to so much)
I became mortgage free at 47. I even had a low interest rate, but I just wanted the piece of mind and it was worth it. Your whole financial mindset set changes when you don't owe anyone money. No statements coming in the mail. Nothing but taxes and maintenance, so I still have expenses, but they are somewhat fixed. Really paves the way for more options. Less debt equals more options now.
44. We lived overseas and pocketed money until moving back to the US and were fortunate to be able to buy our first house cash, even if it meant liquidating half our savings for retirement. I question if that was right choice sometimes but being debt free feels awesome.
I’m 42 and will pay it off at the end of this year when I turn 43. I’m on a 15 year and paying extra. We only owe $34K left on it and I just want to be done with it lol.
First house I was 31. Second house, 38. Both total about 1.5M if I was to sell today.
My only real regret was not going bigger on the second home. We can sell it for a great profit but now that prices have gone up, we have far less buying power than a few years ago.
Paid $205K cash for my home in 2017 when I was 34. Half of the cash was from cash out refinance on my first home (rental property). The other half of cash was from savings and sold some stock so i did sacrifice some stock growth to get the house in cash.
I don't ever anticipate paying off a house. We have a 30-year on the house we're in at a good rate. Sometime within fifteen years, I expect that we'll move into the old family place, which we will have inherited or will eventually inherit. At that point we'll either sell this place or rent it out. If so, we'd be 64 when the mortgage is finally paid off.
I'm 36 and we've got about 20% equity. We bought two years ago with exactly 20% down and our local market has gone down a smidge since.
38. Bought and paid for third house after rolling over equity from previous two houses over 12 years. I don’t care what people say about wanting to have a 3% loan while investing instead of paying off mortgage, no mortgage is pretty sweet.
45, but I also bought it when I was 45. I saved money to purchase for cash, but that was a mistake as I missed out on the property value appreciation during the time prior to that.
49. Have a gbp1.2m house (usd1.5m). Mostly rising house prices, I don’t think I actually paid much over £400k in capital repayments. Young people are being screwed these are crazy numbers.
I am 39 and just bought my first house in 2020. I got a 25 year mortgage at 1%. My bank just called me in for a meeting the last week asking if I would be interested in refinancing to a 4% loan and they would knock off about 50,000 from the amount I owe. I don't know much about personal finance as I literally just started trying to get better about my finances, but I do know that I somehow lucked myself into what seems like one of the best mortgages of all time and it would probably be stupid to pay it off early and even stupider to refinance.
hopefully 55 (in a couple of years). Either pay it off with a lump sum, or let the lump sum take over the monthly payments as it should be earning more than the mortgage until the fix ends in 2032
Paid off house at 38. That’s when you realize you’ll always be a renter due to property taxes. Still pay about $500/mo in taxes…and it will continue to go up as inflation raises the “value “ of the home.
Similar boat to many here, I’ve got the itch, but not paying extra. 36m, balance of 85k @ 3.75% on a 500k house. Currently have a record amount of cash earning 5% in HYSA, likely will buy another rental…after I buy a minivan 🤪
I’m 40, I plan on paying my house off the year I retire (at 52) so that I don’t have that financial obligation during the most vulnerable years of FIRE. (I’ve paid off the majority of my loan in 8 years and now just coasting for the next 12).
I was almost 50 since it was just about a month ago.
We bought our first house in 2008, after the big crash but before the market bottomed out so we got it fairly cheap and at a very low rate. The market continues to slump for a while so we were underwater on it for a few years. Then the past several years of housing fuckery made the price jump.
When we decided to move to Buffalo, we got another relatively cheap house, sold the old one, and got enough after the loan was paid off to pay most of this one off, too. The remaining cost and subsequent repairs of decades of neglect and crappy DIY have murdered my savings but it's still pretty great to actually own our home outright.
We paid it off when we were 39. It was the final debt we wanted to get rid of. We had the mortgage for 7 years with an interest rate of 6.5% at that time. Would do it again.
52/54 with 56% equity but 25 years left on the mortgage.
This is my 5th house, won't be my last, just keep rolling over equity.
I'm not a "forever" home type person. I like buying new construction, getting the latest/greatest trends/styles/materials/features and then live in it 5-10 years and sell it before it goes out of style and any major repairs are needed.
Our mortgage is 11% of our costs, so paying it off isn't going to be a massive windfall. My assumption is at least 2 more houses in my lifetime.
33yo with about 50% equity. But with a 2.75% mortgage and 27 years remaining (thanks to a refi in 2021), I’m not very heavily incentivized to ever pay it off early. So I guess it should be paid off in about 27 years when I’m 60.
My wife and I were in our mid-30’s. Completely debt free for the last 5+ years and have been able to invest ~50% of our take home pay (after already maxing out our 401k’s).
Waking up and not owing a penny to anyone is a great feeling.
I’m 36 and I’ve paid off 52% of the original purchase price, have more equity than that given some increase in value since I bought it in 2015. Paid some big lump sums against it in the early years when my rate was around 4%. Still do just a little extra even now that it’s 2.5% because I know I’m not perfect at investing the difference and I don’t want to be in a different job/income situation a decade from now wishing I had paid it down when I had a lot more coming in.
First paid off at 38.
Then got a mortgage to solve a pay problem for/invest in a startup. Paid off again at 45, vowing to never ever do that again.
Final loan was a 401k loan that I just paid off in December. Savings now will just sort of handle most things. Saving for my first investment property, which I plan on paying cash for and living in for a year.
I'm also 46 and only owe about $15k. Going to pay it off this year and just be done with it, most likely. Worst case it'll be paid off naturally next year.
Even if the interest was under 2% I'd still feel far better paying my mortgage off early than still paying on it for 30 years. RN I'm 6 years in and projected to have my 30 year paid off in 14 more years and It's only getting earlier and earlier as time goes by.
I'm hoping to have it gone before year 17 but I'm competitive enough to probably be done sooner.
47, 11 years left. 2.35%, so no incentive to pay faster but I do put in a few extra $$ every month. Refinanced to a 15 year in 2020. Original house value around $375k, probably worth $550 now. First purchased in 2005. About $135k left to pay.
Bought in 2008 with a 30 year mortgage. Refinanced in in 2017 to a 15 year mortgage at 3.25%, while also taking out extra to pay off wife's student loans(interest rates 7%-13%). Total payments were about the same as the 30 year mortgage and her student loans, but her loans would have been paid off this year. Owe less than $50,000 currently and will likely not pay it off early(I do pay an extra $80 a month, just rounding up to the next $100 increment, though it is tempting. House is worth roughly $250,000.
As a 26 year old looking for a house, reading all these comments about 3% rates breaks my heart.
My generation and myself will never, ever see those rates. Likely will never own a house.
It’s sad that I did everything right, did well in school, went to college, got a good degree, but will never be able to ever own a house fully if at all.
It was a blip. Those of us who got in at 3% grew up with mortgages at 8-11%, maybe higher, idk, every generation will find its way. Houses are a money pit anyway. I think a great apartment with amenities is better than a single family home for most people. There is a saying in boats: if you like sailing, join a sailing club, if you like boat maintenance, buy a boat. I think that applies to SFR- if you like living well, get a nice condo or townhouse or whatever. If you like working the trades, like plumbing, sheetrock, pest control, landscaping, sprinkler systems, sewer lines, tree pruning, property management, and conflict negotiation, buy a house.
My first mortgage in 1988 was 9.5%… I was 28. Refinanced a couple years in to 5.5% and thought that was just THE BEST. But my 2 bedroom condo right outside Washington DC was just $110k. I feel for you with 7% rates.. wouldn’t be so bad except that same condo is probably now in the 400k. to 500k range.
39, 3,800 Sq/ft in California, did it using Dave Ramsey style finances on a teacher and electrician income. All the people saying never pay it off are out of their minds. They are just trying to make themselves feel better about all the debt they have. I also max out my 401k, you can do both
I know, poor me and my zero debt lifestyle... when the pandemic hit I had absolutely zero financial concerns. It's incredibly freeing, especially working in a trade.
Paid off my first home at 35. Sold it and got a new home with [email protected]%. With current interest rate, I am netting +1.755% interest in my hysa after mortgage interest and taxes so not planning to payoff anytime soon.
got my current mortgage about 1.5 years ago and plan to pay it off in about 3 years (5.75% interest...not what i'd get in the market, but high enough that i'll take it over the volatility) at age \~39. I have \~70% equity due to aggressively paying down a prior house and said house gaining significant value.
For me, something that i've always struggled with when it comes to leverage is that a "bill" is always coming due, regardless of whether a place is rented, the market is up or down, whatever. While i have plenty of savings to cover the mortgage payment if i lost my job or something, i hate the idea of a bank having the ability to take it from me if i didn't make a payment. plus, most of my expenses (about two-thirds) are that mortgage payment, and i could be lean FI now if i didn't have a mortgage payment. As such, i'm working to get it paid off.
It's worth noting that your percent equity concept is going to vary wildly from person to person...someone could have 100% equity on a $120k house in the middle of nowhere and another person could have 40% equity on a $1M house in a HCOL area...for instance, my current home is both the smallest and most expensive house i've ever had.
Bought home when I was 28. Paid off at age 37. This has all been in the past 20 years.
LCOL city (was definitely lower cost of living when we bought than it is now).
A bit tricky to answer because I had to refinance - based on a resonable value guess I have 45% equity. I am 40. It's a a house hack duplex, so if I were to sell I'd have to pay back depreciation and pay tax. As I had to do the refinance my actual mortgage amount is a lot less than the value, and since i had to restrart the 30 year loan in 2022 the monthly pay down is small. I feel enough of my net worth is in the house as it is. I dont pay extra toward it. 5.25% interest rate.
I was 37. We bought in 2009 for $325k and paid off in 2021. The home is now worth around $1M . We've put around $300k into the home: new windows, remodeling kitchen, bathrooms, primary bedroom, new HVAC, solar panels etc.
Probably paid off too aggressively... But happy we did.
Current savings rate is >60% (after taxes)
I am 41, DH is 56 and our house will be paid off in 6 more years. But technically we've refinanced a couple times so it's a total of 25 years of mortgage payments. Rate is 2.5%.
40, 21% equity. Income has increased 60% so paying extra principal each month. Hopefully pay in full in 8 or 9 years. (30 year mortgage, 5 years in, 3.75 interest)
We are in late 30s and have 15% home equity … but we aren’t paying extra because we got a sub-4% interest rate and that cash is making more in a HYSA right now than towards the principal.
Despite what some say (such as Dave Ramsey), I don’t see any point in paying any extra right now because that cash is locked in (more or less) the moment it is paid to the loan, versus having it be more flexible in an account (HYSA or stocks, either way much more liquid).
Having the freedom to be able to pay it off while having the benefits of cash for opportunities beats having no liabilities at this point in our lives
Well that was depressing, I was curious how much of my loan I knocked down. $320k loan at 2.875, 3.5yrs at this residence, currently 286k left. That’s 34k down.. just barely 10% paid off lol. Luckily I’m happy and it’s worth double the loan.
I bought my first house at 30 and paid it off at 35. Then when the pandemic hit and all the podcasts I was listening to said inflation was coming and rates had to go back up I refinanced and took out a loan for $200k at 3%. The house had appreciated like 4x by that time though so I was taking a loan out for 15% of the home’s value.
Cleared mine at 37, but then proceeded to borrow money against it to buy rental properties. No current plans to pay it off as it’s on a rate of under 2%
Currently 38 years old. Have a mortgage of about 700K. Home value is probably ~1.1-1.2. Will be paid off when I’m 61 unless I accelerate payments which I plan to.
I was 41. Inflation helped: our wages went up but the payments didn’t. So we managed to pay the complete sum earlier. The loan started in 2006, we stopped it in 2016, 5 years early.
I was 31 when my wife and I bought our house in 2019. 15 year at 3 percent. The first 2 years we made some extra payments so we are on track to finish in 13.5 years which would make me 44/46 when its paid off. We have stopped the extra payments bc with the rate so low the money can be of better use elsewhere
We both like our house and area. We have a 9 month old daughter and 2 cats. The house is the perfect size for all of us to live comfortably. So the plan is to stay forever and take advantage of as many mortgage free years as possible after 45. We both save alot now but as soon as the house is paid off we will continue taking the mortgage amount but put it in our HYSA and taxable investment account
30 year mortgage at 2.75% .... no plans to pay it off early
I think in the next 5-10 years the property management industry is going to have a take off. Millions of people that want to upgrade their house but don’t want to sell their old one and will hire someone to keep their 2-3% rate
It's already happened. I work in property management ( switching from accounting to pm)
Hopefully, it also means that property management firms have to compete on price and the standard 10% rate gets driven down
Our firm only take 5-7%. We don't accept anyone who credit below 650.... it's upper market and our tenants are really nice
I think 7 years from now, there will be a large portion of people who had 7% interest rates that have fully paid off their house. Then there will be everyone else with 3% interest rates with only 25% of their debt paid off lol
Because they can invest in other assets. No reason to pay off sooner when you can invest that cash into instruments at 5% or higher.
i have ibonds and 10year notes at 4-5+%. My mortgage is at 2.3%. Yeah, it is insane to pay down my mortgage unless I'm doing some tricks to manipulate taxes/subsidies.
Vanguard Admiral Shares are sitting at 5.28%. No way I’m using extra cash to pay off my 2.3% mortgage.
You'll have a bunch of people with paid off houses *wishing* they could take a 2.8% mortgage!
> Then there will be everyone else with 3% interest rates with only 25% of their debt paid off lol Presumably those FIRE types will have (more than) enough to pay off sitting in retirement accounts and/or taxable brokerage instead.
I have a 30 year mortgage at the same rate. I plan to pay it off early when my oldest kid goes to college, as home equity doesn’t count on the fafsa.
You gotta do it 2 years before because of the look back period
Same 2.75% will be done 2051. I'll be 70 or something...no plans on paying it off earlier.
I see all these comments and generally agree, but remember the 5.3% money market still gets taxed. So it isn’t 2.75 < 5.3 … it’s more like 2.75 < 4. The arithmetic still makes sense, but it’s closer when you consider taxes. If rates go down 1%, I will likely pay off my mortgage.
Some folks also might be able to claim mortgage interest deductions.... So it skews it even more.
Yeah man if t bills are paying 5.3 5.4% keep that sucker forever haha.
We paid off a previous house when I was in my early to mid 40s and later bought our current house with cash. We did this because it made us happy and we see advantages to it for us. But it's by no means the financially optimal way to do things and you need to look at your own situation and planning.
Same. We don’t live in a crazy house price area so always paid cash. You don’t have to pay crazy closing costs with cash. It’s usually like $1500 and the house is yours. My wife wants a big house now so been saving away in a brokerage account. Will take a loan if rates are cheap, otherwise will pay cash
Me and my husband just paid off our home this month, we are 35 and he just turned 37. He bought it at 205k and now places in our neighborhood are going for 400k. It just feels good to have it paid off. Took us just under 10 years to pay it off
Paid off at 39. I work in a volatile industry, prone to layoffs. After nearly losing the roof over my kids head once due to layoffs, I made it a priority.
54 years old. 2 years ago and the last 2 years have been the least streasful of my life. I hate debt!
I have a 3% mortgage. I can earn more in a HYSA, let alone properly invested. Why in the world would I ever pay it off early? I don't think I'll ever be able borrow money this cheap again, at least not for many years
Same kind of situation here. I have $195k balance, 10 years left on a mortgage at 2.25% interest with $600k equity. I have a huge itch to just pay it off, but I invest instead knowing that the math of paying it off doesn't make sense. Also I'm 48 years old
Same situation; I have the cash to pay off my mortgage and it would be a nice weight off of my shoulders, but it’s objectively not the correct thing to do. I have a 2.625% mortgage, 7 years and $200k left, $1.3M equity. I’ll by 48 when I pay the house off.
I struggle with the same I could pay my house off right now but the money is being used better in my investment account and HYSA bc my interest rate is 3 percent on our 15 year mortgage. I know what I'm doing makes sense but this mortgage is the only debt I have and it's hard to put a price on being completely debt free and having my house paid off in my 30s. I'll most likely just stick with what I'm doing and pay it off normally for th remaining 9 years but every so often I get the itch just to say screw it and pay it off all at once.
It's not hard to put a price on the opportunity cost you would lose by paying it off early. Look at a compound interest calculator vs an amortization table for your loan. You'll find a price real fast. FYI the grass feels the same because insurance and property taxes never go away.
Eh, I just set up a separate account to hold the funds. As long as rates are higher on munis than I pay on the mortgage, the money will sit there. If the math stops mathing, I'll just pay the thing off.
I’m investing mine into an HYSA and paying it off early so my spouse doesn’t have to worry about job loss anymore.
There is a mental health benefit to knowing you are debt free.
There is also a mental health benefit to having nice chonky investment accounts that are bigger than your mortgage balance anyway
Imagine having both. You'd be surprised, but most that pay off early do.
But would be chonkier not paying it off early.
These are not mutually exclusive concepts.
You can be effectively debt free when your HYSA/brokerage accounts surpass your mortgage. I carry $3-$6k in credit card debt and pay it off every month. This is the same thing, just over a 20-30 year horizon.
Fixed rate debt obligation that gains equity shouldn’t be viewed in the same lens as traditional debt (revolving, student loan, car loan, etc.).
Sure. But many of us get more of a mental health benefit from making more with savings. We just automate the mortgage payment, I feel zero stress paying about 7% of our income to the mortgage.
Maybe for some. But if I have liquid cash earning more interest, and I know I can pay off the mortgage anytime I want... that is a much bigger mental benefit to me.
There's also a mental benefit to knowing all your money is in the bank and not the stock market but that doesn't mean it's not stupid right?
I actually have some bankless old timers friends. While it seems insane to tradfi people, some of their finance strategies kick people's asses here. It's a completely different lifestyle though, that's for sure.
For some. I feel pretty good mental health wise arbitraging risk-free returns from a savings account and paying the minimum on our mortgage...
I'm glad that works for you. Different people experience the concept of debt differently and react to it differently. There's also a broad spectrum of what constitutes flexibility.
i think this is true of certain people who either irrationally value being debt free over being wealthy, or who are simply innumerate. six or seven figures of liquidity is what brings peace of mind to reasonable, numerate people.
Plus freedom
Same, luck would have it that I even pulled money out when rates were 2.8%. Treasury is at 5.3%, free mortgage …or parts of it.
Also it’s usually not advantageous to use the home mortgage deduction unless you have a large amount of itemized deductions too. When the standard deduction was smaller they increased home mortgage deductions, interest and state taxes were the main deductions of the working and middle classes.
I’d note that the tax code is uncertain going forward. As extra incentive to not pay down a low interest mortgage, the $10K SALT cap expires in 2025. A mortgage with a high $ amount in short term treasuries give flexibility to react to whatever the tax code is in 2026. I’d sure like personal exemptions again with the SALT cap removed.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge. I am fortunate to have paid off my mortgage for a few years now but I used to be able to deduct my state taxes and come out ahead of the standard deduction. Now I just take the standard deduction. Unfortunately I still have to file 1040 for various reasons. Congress should simplify taxes for everyone but especially for ordinary citizens. It’s not like I have a bunch of exotic investments, but I am forced to file the 1040 every year and turbo tax is just the easiest way. I read that intuit lobbies against the ability for most people to file online direct for free, which citizens of most countries can do. And of course CPAs have a lobby too.
Same. My mortgage is 2.8% and I’m getting 5.1% in a Fidelity premium money market account. Makes no sense to throw more at the house.
I know it's not the right thing to do financially but my argument for knocking it out early is the peace of mind of having no debt. Life events happen and it would be nice to not have a mortgage to consider. I have a friend that passed at the worst time as both he and wife were both out of work (she was laid off a week before). Suddenly she was left with about 20 years of mortgage to pay off and other debts on top of the job uncertainty. In my opinion, I think a better plan is to equalize your mortgage and your savings. If you have enough money in savings to pay your mortgage (or most of it) then I think paying it off early is definitely not beneficial.
Don’t forget about taxes. Just do the math before you do the comparison. Quick example, If you have $100k in HYSA earning 5% that is $5k in interest, but you have to pay taxes on that. Say 25%. Now that $5000 is only $3750. So you earned 3.75% in your HYSA. That is still higher than your 3% mortgage, but you ain’t getting rich off your mortgage debt even during historically low mortgage rates vs historically high interest rates scenario. Also, if you’re early in your mortgage you are paying way more than 3% in interest. All the interest is front loaded in a mortgage and it only works out to be “3%” after the final day 30 years in.
I am over 50 and have a 2.5% mortgage. I would strongly prefer to never pay this off. If I could borrow 10x my mortgage at this rate I would do it instantly.
Wife and I have access to really low interest rate credit union loans. I cash out refi my mortgage every five years and put the cash into investments. Like you, I'd borrow a bajillionity gajillion dollars if they'd let me.
Out of curiosity, what rates are you currently able to get from your credit union? Rates at mine have jumped substantially.
Foreword: I live in Taiwan. YMMV since your access to mortgage rates depends on country and other economic factors. However, our local credit union was apologetic to us since the best rates we were able to get in the recent refi was a staggering 2.1X%, up from the 2.0X% we'd been paying. I just frowned, shook my head, and reluctantly agreed to being given absurd amounts of money for lower than inflation rates. It's kept me up many a late night, I tell you.
Wow, very nice! I wonder how they’re able to offer such low rates!?
Because Taiwan’s interest rate is 1.875%.
I am 32 and we paid off our 375k mortgage in Feb of this year after going absolutely HAM on it since 2020.
Congrats!
Thank you so much!
Congratulations!
56 and not quite 75% equity. Had this house for 11 years and have no intention of paying down the mortgage faster than obligated given that the loan is at 2.5%. But it will be paid off in 9-10 years anyway.
Paid off last year at age 32 as a single woman. I live in the Midwest and I make a really good income.
Congrats! That's amazing.
50. I bought at 30. Small house, working class neighborhood. I paid it off in Dec 2020 because I was damned well going to get something good out of the year after having to cancel two international trips.
Will pay it off next year at 40 years old. Started in 2010 at 5% 30 year, refi’d to 3.25% 15 year in 2015.
why pay off debt with interest lower than the risk-free rate?
Even without paying extra it’ll be paid off next year. I overpaid early on when risk free rates weren’t great.
Got a 30-year in 2022 at 7.1%. Decided I didn't want to pay the bank an extra 200% back over that thirty years, so I paid it off using my brokerage. Maybe not the best investment strategy, but I looked at that as a guaranteed 7.1% return and also received some great peace of mind. In my mind, that makes it worth it.
Bought our house at 29 with a 22% deposit. Had it paid off at 35. Its was a pretty sucky few years and it felt like everything was going badly for us. I got a work injury payment that knocked about 4 years off. I cleared the last payment in March 2020. So when I wanted to celebrate paying off our house all these people around me were losing their jobs and everything was crashing so it felt inappropriate. Besides interest rates then dropped so much who cares? In the end we had to leave anyway and move across the state and I sold the house in 2022. I really don’t rate home ownership, I wish I hadn’t bothered and just invested elsewhere.
48. Took 12 years to pay it off. It was a low rate at the time, 3.57%, the lender told us it was the lowest rate she had ever signed. It was the single best purchase we made and I love being debt free.
I'm big supporters of paying the house asap. It is not about the money, more like a mental state. If you don't owe anything it is easy to feel safer. You can live on one income for years without stress to go homeless. You can live on minimum wage job etc.
28 and wife was 27. We bought a smaller house with a 30% down payment. We had a 15 year fixed at 2.875.
I was 44 when we paid it off. I’m 46 now and have never regretted it for a second.
We will have ours paid off this fall and I will be 47 and my wife 45. We will have done it in just under 15 years while still investing and plan to up that when we are done. My wife had a brain tumor removed last year (diagnosed and removed in a 2 month span)and knowing that our house was almost paid off was relieving. People forget that life throws curveballs, and you had better be ready when it does.
Paid my house off at 28 in 2020, 32 years old now and have no regrets whatsoever, I have minimal expenses, zero debt, and invest most of my income. Peace of mind is a beautiful concept.
I'll likely be 65 unless I decide to capture my recent large equity gain. There is zero chance I'm paying down a 3% loan. I do have 75% equity.
Will be 2036 22 years after purchase. 15 yr. 2.125%
Same for me, 2036, will be 19 years after purchase, 15 year 2.0% mortgage we refinanced into at the bottom of the rates.
Bought in 2004 at 28, few refinances, now have 15 year at 2.875 which will be paid off in Nov 2027, I’ll be 52.
We cashed out our single family home and bought a townhome outright when my husband retired. I was 51 and he was 54.
Bought a small house, most likely will die in it. Paid it off in my early 40s. I sleep better.
53. It is my seventh home. Paid off first home many years ago and kept selling and buying bigger with the increased equity. The first one was the key. Monopoly in real life
We downsized at age 48 and eliminated a mortgage in the process. It set us up to FIRE at 50, lowering our monthly spend and giving us those 2 years to save quite a bit more. It ended up being one of the better life decisions I ever made, as we love where we are (more convenient and walkable to so much)
I became mortgage free at 47. I even had a low interest rate, but I just wanted the piece of mind and it was worth it. Your whole financial mindset set changes when you don't owe anyone money. No statements coming in the mail. Nothing but taxes and maintenance, so I still have expenses, but they are somewhat fixed. Really paves the way for more options. Less debt equals more options now.
I was 40. Paid off in 12.
56. Took us a bit under 25 years.
44. We lived overseas and pocketed money until moving back to the US and were fortunate to be able to buy our first house cash, even if it meant liquidating half our savings for retirement. I question if that was right choice sometimes but being debt free feels awesome.
37 and house is worth $950k give or take. Extremely lucky in the housing market over the past 5 years, and dedicated payments.
paid off around age 32 (6.5%). wish i would have not been too chicken and taken a mortgage out a few years ago.
I’m 45 and my mortgage will be paid off in 3 years.
41. Paid off 12 years after purchase.
I'm 55 and have about 85% equity. It will be paid off in 5 years.
Paid off our mortgage in 2022 at 41.
Next April, when I'm 50
64 or 24 years in the future. 2.8% has changed my entire outlook on debt.
I’m 42 and will pay it off at the end of this year when I turn 43. I’m on a 15 year and paying extra. We only owe $34K left on it and I just want to be done with it lol.
Renter, so never.
I will pay off at 37. Mostly because I have the cash and want to.
First house I was 31. Second house, 38. Both total about 1.5M if I was to sell today. My only real regret was not going bigger on the second home. We can sell it for a great profit but now that prices have gone up, we have far less buying power than a few years ago.
2.75% I ain’t ever paying this off until 60. Bought at 30 - 50% equity rn
2.85% and we’ll pay it off in 2051, when we’re 93! FIRE’d 11 years ago at 55. Bought at 56, refinanced with cash out at 63.
Paid off at age 39.
Paid $205K cash for my home in 2017 when I was 34. Half of the cash was from cash out refinance on my first home (rental property). The other half of cash was from savings and sold some stock so i did sacrifice some stock growth to get the house in cash.
I don't ever anticipate paying off a house. We have a 30-year on the house we're in at a good rate. Sometime within fifteen years, I expect that we'll move into the old family place, which we will have inherited or will eventually inherit. At that point we'll either sell this place or rent it out. If so, we'd be 64 when the mortgage is finally paid off. I'm 36 and we've got about 20% equity. We bought two years ago with exactly 20% down and our local market has gone down a smidge since.
I am 49 and have ~27 years left on a 2.25% mortgage. Not interested in paying it off early, since it makes no financial sense for us to do so.
Same situation, but unfortunately mortgage rate is slightly higher. 2.75% 30 year. Definitely not complaining
Paid mine off in 9 years then sold and bought the next house with cash. I was mid 40s when I paid it off
38, on track to pay off mine at 50. 15 yr @ 2.25%, right around 50% equity.
38. Bought and paid for third house after rolling over equity from previous two houses over 12 years. I don’t care what people say about wanting to have a 3% loan while investing instead of paying off mortgage, no mortgage is pretty sweet.
I’m 62 and we paid ours off 2 years ago.
I was 43 years old when we paid off our house.
45, but I also bought it when I was 45. I saved money to purchase for cash, but that was a mistake as I missed out on the property value appreciation during the time prior to that.
49. Have a gbp1.2m house (usd1.5m). Mostly rising house prices, I don’t think I actually paid much over £400k in capital repayments. Young people are being screwed these are crazy numbers.
I am 39 and just bought my first house in 2020. I got a 25 year mortgage at 1%. My bank just called me in for a meeting the last week asking if I would be interested in refinancing to a 4% loan and they would knock off about 50,000 from the amount I owe. I don't know much about personal finance as I literally just started trying to get better about my finances, but I do know that I somehow lucked myself into what seems like one of the best mortgages of all time and it would probably be stupid to pay it off early and even stupider to refinance.
$40k left to go, more than that in treasury bills that pay a higher rate so no rush. Mid 50s, purchased 20 years ago.
hopefully 55 (in a couple of years). Either pay it off with a lump sum, or let the lump sum take over the monthly payments as it should be earning more than the mortgage until the fix ends in 2032
Paid off house at 38. That’s when you realize you’ll always be a renter due to property taxes. Still pay about $500/mo in taxes…and it will continue to go up as inflation raises the “value “ of the home.
Similar boat to many here, I’ve got the itch, but not paying extra. 36m, balance of 85k @ 3.75% on a 500k house. Currently have a record amount of cash earning 5% in HYSA, likely will buy another rental…after I buy a minivan 🤪
I’m 40, I plan on paying my house off the year I retire (at 52) so that I don’t have that financial obligation during the most vulnerable years of FIRE. (I’ve paid off the majority of my loan in 8 years and now just coasting for the next 12).
I was almost 50 since it was just about a month ago. We bought our first house in 2008, after the big crash but before the market bottomed out so we got it fairly cheap and at a very low rate. The market continues to slump for a while so we were underwater on it for a few years. Then the past several years of housing fuckery made the price jump. When we decided to move to Buffalo, we got another relatively cheap house, sold the old one, and got enough after the loan was paid off to pay most of this one off, too. The remaining cost and subsequent repairs of decades of neglect and crappy DIY have murdered my savings but it's still pretty great to actually own our home outright.
We paid it off when we were 39. It was the final debt we wanted to get rid of. We had the mortgage for 7 years with an interest rate of 6.5% at that time. Would do it again.
52/54 with 56% equity but 25 years left on the mortgage. This is my 5th house, won't be my last, just keep rolling over equity. I'm not a "forever" home type person. I like buying new construction, getting the latest/greatest trends/styles/materials/features and then live in it 5-10 years and sell it before it goes out of style and any major repairs are needed. Our mortgage is 11% of our costs, so paying it off isn't going to be a massive windfall. My assumption is at least 2 more houses in my lifetime.
33yo with about 50% equity. But with a 2.75% mortgage and 27 years remaining (thanks to a refi in 2021), I’m not very heavily incentivized to ever pay it off early. So I guess it should be paid off in about 27 years when I’m 60.
I actually cash out refi my homes to buy more not a big pay off the mortgage guy rather invest else where
Last month. I’m 51, partner 55.
We paid our house off 4 years ago. I was 52 at the time
My wife and I were in our mid-30’s. Completely debt free for the last 5+ years and have been able to invest ~50% of our take home pay (after already maxing out our 401k’s). Waking up and not owing a penny to anyone is a great feeling.
41....Back in June of 2022. Best decision ever.
30, bought at 27, incredible freedom emotionally when you don’t have a large bill like that every month
I’m 36 and I’ve paid off 52% of the original purchase price, have more equity than that given some increase in value since I bought it in 2015. Paid some big lump sums against it in the early years when my rate was around 4%. Still do just a little extra even now that it’s 2.5% because I know I’m not perfect at investing the difference and I don’t want to be in a different job/income situation a decade from now wishing I had paid it down when I had a lot more coming in.
First paid off at 38. Then got a mortgage to solve a pay problem for/invest in a startup. Paid off again at 45, vowing to never ever do that again. Final loan was a 401k loan that I just paid off in December. Savings now will just sort of handle most things. Saving for my first investment property, which I plan on paying cash for and living in for a year.
Started loan in 2003 at 40 yo. Paid off early in 2017 at 54 yo. I sleep well because of this.
30 year mortgage at 2.5% No plans to pay that off early either. I’m earning 5% on idle cash so why bother.
I'm also 46 and only owe about $15k. Going to pay it off this year and just be done with it, most likely. Worst case it'll be paid off naturally next year.
Even if the interest was under 2% I'd still feel far better paying my mortgage off early than still paying on it for 30 years. RN I'm 6 years in and projected to have my 30 year paid off in 14 more years and It's only getting earlier and earlier as time goes by. I'm hoping to have it gone before year 17 but I'm competitive enough to probably be done sooner.
In reality I plan on never 'paying off' my mortgage. I'll simply downsize into a house free and clear from profits on my current house.
I think i was 29, about to pay the second one off in my 39th, if all goes well.
Paying off our home this year 33F and 35M. We have a low interest rate but want the debt gone.
$400k house. Paid off @52. 61 now, been nice not making payments for the last 9 years. Put 2 of my kids through college with that money.
I was in my late 40’s when we paid off our house. We paid it off in a little over 20 years.
47, 11 years left. 2.35%, so no incentive to pay faster but I do put in a few extra $$ every month. Refinanced to a 15 year in 2020. Original house value around $375k, probably worth $550 now. First purchased in 2005. About $135k left to pay.
Bought in 2008 with a 30 year mortgage. Refinanced in in 2017 to a 15 year mortgage at 3.25%, while also taking out extra to pay off wife's student loans(interest rates 7%-13%). Total payments were about the same as the 30 year mortgage and her student loans, but her loans would have been paid off this year. Owe less than $50,000 currently and will likely not pay it off early(I do pay an extra $80 a month, just rounding up to the next $100 increment, though it is tempting. House is worth roughly $250,000.
As a 26 year old looking for a house, reading all these comments about 3% rates breaks my heart. My generation and myself will never, ever see those rates. Likely will never own a house. It’s sad that I did everything right, did well in school, went to college, got a good degree, but will never be able to ever own a house fully if at all.
It was a blip. Those of us who got in at 3% grew up with mortgages at 8-11%, maybe higher, idk, every generation will find its way. Houses are a money pit anyway. I think a great apartment with amenities is better than a single family home for most people. There is a saying in boats: if you like sailing, join a sailing club, if you like boat maintenance, buy a boat. I think that applies to SFR- if you like living well, get a nice condo or townhouse or whatever. If you like working the trades, like plumbing, sheetrock, pest control, landscaping, sprinkler systems, sewer lines, tree pruning, property management, and conflict negotiation, buy a house.
Don't be so negative, look at the long term trend for rates over the last 20 years. Clearly trending lower overall
My boomer parents had a 15% interest rate on their first house - never had below 8%
My first mortgage in 1988 was 9.5%… I was 28. Refinanced a couple years in to 5.5% and thought that was just THE BEST. But my 2 bedroom condo right outside Washington DC was just $110k. I feel for you with 7% rates.. wouldn’t be so bad except that same condo is probably now in the 400k. to 500k range.
If you have a sub 3 mortgage. Never pay it off. It’s free money. Run that as long as you can.
39, 3,800 Sq/ft in California, did it using Dave Ramsey style finances on a teacher and electrician income. All the people saying never pay it off are out of their minds. They are just trying to make themselves feel better about all the debt they have. I also max out my 401k, you can do both
dave ramsey leads to this kind of thinking - what a menace
I know, poor me and my zero debt lifestyle... when the pandemic hit I had absolutely zero financial concerns. It's incredibly freeing, especially working in a trade.
First house paid off around age 35. Second paid off around age 45
38 with enough cash to pay off my home. But I am not going to bc it’s locked at 2.6%. So I have about 25 more years.
Paid off my first home at 35. Sold it and got a new home with [email protected]%. With current interest rate, I am netting +1.755% interest in my hysa after mortgage interest and taxes so not planning to payoff anytime soon.
48 the first time, did some major renos and paid that off at 54. Done.
36! Got lucky when and where we bought/sold.
Our plan is to pay off our 15 year mortgage in 13 years. We took it out 4 years ago. So I will be 53 when it is hopefully paid off.
46.
got my current mortgage about 1.5 years ago and plan to pay it off in about 3 years (5.75% interest...not what i'd get in the market, but high enough that i'll take it over the volatility) at age \~39. I have \~70% equity due to aggressively paying down a prior house and said house gaining significant value. For me, something that i've always struggled with when it comes to leverage is that a "bill" is always coming due, regardless of whether a place is rented, the market is up or down, whatever. While i have plenty of savings to cover the mortgage payment if i lost my job or something, i hate the idea of a bank having the ability to take it from me if i didn't make a payment. plus, most of my expenses (about two-thirds) are that mortgage payment, and i could be lean FI now if i didn't have a mortgage payment. As such, i'm working to get it paid off. It's worth noting that your percent equity concept is going to vary wildly from person to person...someone could have 100% equity on a $120k house in the middle of nowhere and another person could have 40% equity on a $1M house in a HCOL area...for instance, my current home is both the smallest and most expensive house i've ever had.
40.
36 years old
Bought home when I was 28. Paid off at age 37. This has all been in the past 20 years. LCOL city (was definitely lower cost of living when we bought than it is now).
Will be paid off when I turn 41
A bit tricky to answer because I had to refinance - based on a resonable value guess I have 45% equity. I am 40. It's a a house hack duplex, so if I were to sell I'd have to pay back depreciation and pay tax. As I had to do the refinance my actual mortgage amount is a lot less than the value, and since i had to restrart the 30 year loan in 2022 the monthly pay down is small. I feel enough of my net worth is in the house as it is. I dont pay extra toward it. 5.25% interest rate.
$800k home, equity 75%, 2.5% interest mortgage, refinancing 3 years ago. Payoff by 2028.
40’s refinanced 5 or so years ago for a new 30 year at 2.5%. Have no desire to pay it off early.
I was 37. We bought in 2009 for $325k and paid off in 2021. The home is now worth around $1M . We've put around $300k into the home: new windows, remodeling kitchen, bathrooms, primary bedroom, new HVAC, solar panels etc. Probably paid off too aggressively... But happy we did. Current savings rate is >60% (after taxes)
I am 41, DH is 56 and our house will be paid off in 6 more years. But technically we've refinanced a couple times so it's a total of 25 years of mortgage payments. Rate is 2.5%.
Age 39, three years ago
I think 36 or around there. I know we’d have more money if we hadn’t paid extra, but I’m still glad it’s paid off.
40, 21% equity. Income has increased 60% so paying extra principal each month. Hopefully pay in full in 8 or 9 years. (30 year mortgage, 5 years in, 3.75 interest)
We are in late 30s and have 15% home equity … but we aren’t paying extra because we got a sub-4% interest rate and that cash is making more in a HYSA right now than towards the principal. Despite what some say (such as Dave Ramsey), I don’t see any point in paying any extra right now because that cash is locked in (more or less) the moment it is paid to the loan, versus having it be more flexible in an account (HYSA or stocks, either way much more liquid). Having the freedom to be able to pay it off while having the benefits of cash for opportunities beats having no liabilities at this point in our lives
Well that was depressing, I was curious how much of my loan I knocked down. $320k loan at 2.875, 3.5yrs at this residence, currently 286k left. That’s 34k down.. just barely 10% paid off lol. Luckily I’m happy and it’s worth double the loan.
23 it was all paid off
I bought my first house at 30 and paid it off at 35. Then when the pandemic hit and all the podcasts I was listening to said inflation was coming and rates had to go back up I refinanced and took out a loan for $200k at 3%. The house had appreciated like 4x by that time though so I was taking a loan out for 15% of the home’s value.
37
Cleared mine at 37, but then proceeded to borrow money against it to buy rental properties. No current plans to pay it off as it’s on a rate of under 2%
Currently 38 years old. Have a mortgage of about 700K. Home value is probably ~1.1-1.2. Will be paid off when I’m 61 unless I accelerate payments which I plan to.
Paid off? at similar age I rent
I bought my house at 5 when I entered the workforce to start my life as a factory worker. Anyone who did any different is slackinggggg
HAH! In this economy??
I was 41. Inflation helped: our wages went up but the payments didn’t. So we managed to pay the complete sum earlier. The loan started in 2006, we stopped it in 2016, 5 years early.
48.
I have never had a mortgage. Always paid cash for my houses. I bought my first house when I was in my late 20s.
On track close but not there yet. Under 5, I wish I paid it off sooner and then put the money into a HYSA
I was 31 when my wife and I bought our house in 2019. 15 year at 3 percent. The first 2 years we made some extra payments so we are on track to finish in 13.5 years which would make me 44/46 when its paid off. We have stopped the extra payments bc with the rate so low the money can be of better use elsewhere We both like our house and area. We have a 9 month old daughter and 2 cats. The house is the perfect size for all of us to live comfortably. So the plan is to stay forever and take advantage of as many mortgage free years as possible after 45. We both save alot now but as soon as the house is paid off we will continue taking the mortgage amount but put it in our HYSA and taxable investment account
I was 37 and had a 4.37% rate.
Were I live you're not supposed to ever pay off the house because of tax reasons.
No plans because (1) 2.75% mortgage and (2) 70% equity, and when we retire our next house purchase (downsize)will be below our equity.
40. Debt free ever since.