What age did you pay off home mortgage?

[QVCshopper]

like the op i'll preface this question by saying that if it's too personal feel free to not answer.

i'm curious-those that have paid off their mortgages early or are working towards it, did you or do you have "emergency" savings in place if a major expense comes your way or a catestrophic event occurs that severly reduces or completly eliminates your income?

...i guess what i'm wondering is weather the "norm" with this kind of plan is to first fully fund a savings account, and then work towards the goal-or-is the idea that the paid in full home is regarded as the primary goal.

We thought of this and took out a home equity line of credit right before paying off the mortgage. We still have the LOC, but have yet to use it. We got it only as an emergency backup plan. That said, paying off the mortgage wasn't our only money. We had some in money markets and could hit up our initial Roth investments in a rare and extreme situation.

I just want to also say that some of these comments are why I don't tell many people I know that I don't have a mortgage. They either assume I'm from a rich family, I make a lot (I wish!), I'm extremely cheap (this one is true), I bought a really inexpensive house in a low tax area (we're in the outskirts of Philly--not that cheap!), and other ideas... It's about choices and some good fortune. For example, we were approved for $125K more than we spent on a house; we don't have big TVs or gadgets, and I worked for a mutual fund company that taught me a lot about finances. Plus, when you watch your parents go to a food bank and borrow money from you; it changes you. For me, it changed me for the better.

It's like The Amazing Race. Some people get to the end faster than others. How that happens depends on what decisions they make and the rest is left to luck.

Plus, we were able to pay it off before kids when we both worked full-time. So, I think we've enjoyed their childhood.

 

[LovableGluttons]

We almost bought a house in West Texas in the mid nineties, new construction, but DH got surprise orders, so no house.


I can wholeheartedly say we were not like many of the people we knew in the military. Many were single income families whose pay was spent before it hit the bank.

There was no way I was going to work all those 12 hour night shifts for all those years without financial security to show for it. Although we had life insurance, I always worried my husband would die, leaving our children and myself penniless if I didn't have my own career.

When it took so long for DH to find a great position after his military retirement, I was glad for the lack of mortgage, but still picked up additional employment so we could still meet our savings goals.

I'm a terrible example. My own neurosis fueled the way I am. DH just sees that it might be easier to let me do it than not.

We never had the benefit of orders to places with healthy housing markets. Several of the bases actually are closed and the areas surrounding them depressed without the revenue generated.

Rotten luck + neurosis= no debt. Nothing special or magical.

 

[jessica52877]

I would love to post this question on another board and see the answers that come in (honest ones of course). I feel like the dis budget board, and especially those that answer aren't the best representation of what is really going on.

At this rate, I'll be 48, we just refinanced to a 15 yr. I was paying more with the 30 each month, but can't seem to swing it ever now. DH will be 71, so not so ideal in his case. I try every day to figure out how to pay it off quicker, but just can't seem to get anywhere.

We have no debt elsewhere and never have.

 

[mousefan1972]

We just closed on our re-fi yesterday. 15 years at 3.875%. Since I just turned 38, I'll be 53 when we pay it off. Although hopefully we'll pay if off sooner than that...

 

[LovableGluttons]

I would love to post this question on another board and see the answers that come in (honest ones of course). I feel like the dis budget board, and especially those that answer aren't the best representation of what is really going on.

At this rate, I'll be 48, we just refinanced to a 15 yr. I was paying more with the 30 each month, but can't seem to swing it ever now. DH will be 71, so not so ideal in his case. I try every day to figure out how to pay it off quicker, but just can't seem to get anywhere.

We have no debt elsewhere and never have.

I would love to know if the answers would vary on other boards as well.


I always feel a bit like a freak when I post which makes me hesitate to share.


I was very poor in college and often went days without food so I could paymy tuition. I confessedthis to my parents a few years ago and they were really upset.

 

[gshanny]

I was 36 and DH 38 when we paid ours off. We did a 15 year loan and paid extra whenever we could. We were set to pay it off early, but did it earlier than planned thanks to Mother Nature and a neighbor who should have had her license taken away before she did.
We had just reshingled the house and 3 weeks later we had a huge hail storm(softball size) that did the roof in. Insurance paid out and we did it ourselves again. A few weeks later a neighbor drove through a garage wall, across the alley, missed our pool, and took out our bay window and still had her foot on the gas when the neighbors got to her. We did a lot of the work ourselves again.
We used the extra money to pay it off about 2 years earlier than planned, 4 years total in the end.
This is NOT a recommended way to do it though.lol

 

[bluesaturn]

We bought our current home with cash when DH was 23 and I was 25. (just married) We have been saving and investing like crazy since then and are planning to move to a new city when DH graduates this spring. At that time we will also be paying cash for our next home. I buy all of my children's clothing second hand, plan our meals carefully around sales, we don't go out to movies or to eat, etc.

You don't have to answer these questions, but I'm just curious. Isn't your husband a med student (or am I not remembering correctly)? How did you have enough money at 23 and 25 to buy a home? Did you go to college? Do you work now? Does your husband?

I'm not asking to be snarky I am genuinely curious. I'm in my twenties in grad school, and I'm pretty good with money, but I cannot imagine being able to pay for a home in cash.

 

[LoveBWVVBR]

We paid it off the spring before our 27th birthdays, so we were technically 26. We worked our butts off and went without things that some would deem "essential" to do it, but it was soooo worthwhile.

 

[LoveBWVVBR]

You don't have to answer these questions, but I'm just curious. Isn't your husband a med student (or am I not remembering correctly)? How did you have enough money at 23 and 25 to buy a home? Did you go to college? Do you work now? Does your husband?

I'm not asking to be snarky I am genuinely curious. I'm in my twenties in grad school, and I'm pretty good with money, but I cannot imagine being able to pay for a home in cash.

I'm not the poster that you questioned, but we bought when we were 23 and paid it off when we were 26. Yes, we both went to college and I have a graduate degree that my previous employer paid for 100%. We are in a well-paid profession (engineers). DH works and I stay at home with the kids now, but we were a 2-income couple for a decade before having kids.

 

[crisi]

You do realize you are paying MORE in interest on your loan than you are saving on your taxes right? If this is the only thing holding you back PAY OFF THE MORTGAGE!

Yes and no.

As I said, I paid off my mortgage a few years ago. This year I bought a second home (for my brother in law to live in - he's had some setbacks - now has cancer - and this was a preferable solution than having him move into MY house, or having my husband and mother in law stress that he won't have a roof over his head). We paid cash for it - sold some stock, cashed out that ING "rainy day" account. Moved some money around. It wasn't an expensive home, but I managed to pull the cash together.

Then promptly took out a mortgage. The mortgage is a 4%. I made better than 20% last year on my money (not exceptional, almost everyone did), but most of my stocks are dividend stocks paying 6% on my original investment. I write off the interest on the mortgage, and take the gains on the stock that I would have used to buy the house. Put all my cash back where it came from (which means I took a little loss on some of it, but I was patient and lucky - I sold high and was able to buy back most of it for pretty close to what I sold it for). I'll come out ahead on the mortgage. (The house is not a great investment in anything other than my marriage).

 

[mafibisha]

(The house is not a great investment in anything other than my marriage).

And THAT could be the best thing written in this thread.

Wayyy too many times people confuse cost and value. (or words to that affect)

Sounds like the *value* of that house is much greater than the *cost*.

It actually sounds *priceless* !!

Good for you. And bless you for your kindness to your BIL !

 

[poohfriend77]

We are on track to pay the mortgage off right as our DD graduates from high school.....so we will go straight from mortgage payment to college tuition

We're hoping to do this too, assuming we bump up our payments a little more once I go back to work full time. Right now, our projected final mortgage payment is the same month our youngest DD (in kindy now) would graduate college.

After that many years of mortgage payments and private school/college tuition for two kids, I'm picturing DH and I just sitting around with piles of cash, wondering how to spend it all. I already told DH my vote is for a month at WDW!

 

[neatokimmo]

I paid it off right after my 30th birthday. It was a super cheap house to begin with and I paid for the remodeling repairs as I went. It was also prekid which makes a big difference.

I have a heloc line on it now to pay for another house (long story) but when the other sells, it will be 100% paid off again. I sort of play the two heloc lines off each other so I don't make payments lol

 

[estherhead]

I was 36 and DH 38 when we paid ours off. We did a 15 year loan and paid extra whenever we could. We were set to pay it off early, but did it earlier than planned thanks to Mother Nature and a neighbor who should have had her license taken away before she did.
We had just reshingled the house and 3 weeks later we had a huge hail storm(softball size) that did the roof in. Insurance paid out and we did it ourselves again. A few weeks later a neighbor drove through a garage wall, across the alley, missed our pool, and took out our bay window and still had her foot on the gas when the neighbors got to her. We did a lot of the work ourselves again.
We used the extra money to pay it off about 2 years earlier than planned, 4 years total in the end.
This is NOT a recommended way to do it though.lol

This made me smile. My parents had a similar experience. They had a really ugly house (bought for wheelchair accessibility, not beauty) and one day when they were on vacation their neighbor called me & said, "I was walking by your parent's driveway and there is water pouring out of the garage and down the driveway."

So I rush over and the water pipes had all burst due to the water company not having the right valves on. Two years later their house was gorgeous! With two rentable apartments in the basement. And they live there free now. But, boy, was it a traumatic two years. And even though my house isn't that cute and not paid off and not an income property: I'm not wishing for a flood! What a disaster.

 

[asmit4]

Just to make someone else feel a bit more 'normal' We won't be done for 25 more years and ideally? We plan on moving in 5 years and using the equity in our house to build...and take out another 30yr. mortgage. I don't mind though. I don't know any of my friends that are paying theirs off early. I know of many that are struggling to even make the mortgage.

We have 2 car loans, 2 student loans and a mortgage. This is the 'norm' for our friends. We all make decent $$...high 5 figures or low 6 figures. Living in our area that's well above the median which is around 45K/household. Most are 2 income homes and have daycare expenses too.

We do ok for ourselves and have 10% in retirement $$ being saved yearly. I consider ourselves 'average middle class'. Could we do better by not buying nice things or going on nice trips? Sure! But ya only live once and ya can't take it with you

I think it's great that you all are so good about paying off your debts. I just can't ever see us being this way and I'm ok with that.

So just in case there are other 30 year mortgage people and other 20 year student loan people out there- you are not alone

 

[Maddle]

This is a fascinating thread!

I have no idea what our age will be when the current mortgage is paid off, but we refinanced a year ago at 51; so adding 30 years, we will be about 81.

A few observations -

Personal back story - we spent 27 years in the military, and owned homes for about 18 or 20 years of that time, on and off depending on the station. We lived on one income, and saved money religiously. We would put down a sizeable down payment, and then leverage it with the housing allowance. We were fortunate that we never lost money, (although it was touch and go for a couple times) and we did make some over the years.

Income Tax Deduction - although some have pointed out that you pay more in interest than the percentage you save in deduction, the housing deduction usually puts you up over the standard deduction, and allows you to take advantage of other allowable deductions (charity, medical, etc.)

It really is a personal lifestyle decision, and can be compounded by so many factors: How much liquidity do you need to feel comfortable? How much debt keeps you awake at night? What kind of interest are you paying compared to what you could earn with liquid assets? How much income can you count on next month? next year? How hot is the housing market? How soon do you think you will have to move?

There's just no one size fits all solution to the puzzle.

 

[crisi]

And THAT could be the best thing written in this thread.

Wayyy too many times people confuse cost and value. (or words to that affect)

Sounds like the *value* of that house is much greater than the *cost*.

It actually sounds *priceless* !!

Good for you. And bless you for your kindness to your BIL !

Thanks, but its selfish. He's been a screwup, made poor choice after poor choice, hasn't listened to advice, and I've already bailed him out to the tune of $30k once. I'd let him starve on the street (I didn't step in to rescue my OWN sister from herself - she didn't even get the $30k first strike - I did rescue my other sister from my sister though - financially). But I sort of like my husband and the family dynamics at play are different than mine - so it was this, let him move into my house (um...let me think....NO), or stop being married. This was the lesser evil.

 

[beaucoup]

We took a 30 yr mtg but paid it off in 15 yrs. We were 44 yrs old when it was paid off.
We still have an open home equity line with no balance. No plans to use it though. Its just there.

Would love to move someday, but hate that thought of ever going back to any mortgage payment.

 

[amyy]

Bought my 1st house at age 40 and it is a 30 year mortgage. I am paying the equivalent of one extra house payment a year which will knock a few years off. This week I decide to up my retirement instead so I only expect to make about one extra house payment a year. At this point a very, very small emergency fund. We did just put on a metal roof and buy a new car with cash so it isn't as bad as it sounds even though it might take awhile to pay off my house.

 

[mafibisha]

This is a fascinating thread!

I have no idea what our age will be when the current mortgage is paid off, but we refinanced a year ago at 51; so adding 30 years, we will be about 81.

Just to make someone else feel a bit more 'normal' We won't be done for 25 more years and ideally? We plan on moving in 5 years and using the equity in our house to build...and take out another 30yr. mortgage. I don't mind though. I don't know any of my friends that are paying theirs off early. I know of many that are struggling to even make the mortgage. We have 2 car loans, 2 student loans and a mortgage. This is the 'norm' for our friends. We all make decent $$...high 5 figures or low 6 figures. Living in our area that's well above the median which is around 45K/household. Most are 2 income homes and have daycare expenses too.

We do ok for ourselves and have 10% in retirement $$ being saved yearly. I consider ourselves 'average middle class'. Could we do better by not buying nice things or going on nice trips? Sure! But ya only live once and ya can't take it with you I think it's great that you all are so good about paying off your debts. I just can't ever see us being this way and I'm ok with that.

So just in case there are other 30 year mortgage people and other 20 year student loan people out there- you are not alone

I so appreciate these posts! And I'm sure many others do, too!
After reading the budget board for several years now, I'm sure many of us can relate . . . !