The popular opinion on this forum is that paying off your house is bad because investing in the stock market will yield more returns in the long term. I cannot argue with that. However, this is where the personal aspect of personal finance comes in.
I am debt averse, therefore, I would prefer to not have a mortgage payment. In my situation it made a lot of sense because I had a lot of cash sitting in the bank. My two choices came down to investing that money as a lump sum into the stock market, or paying off the house.
Oh boy, this again. Paying off one's mortgage
at the expense of retirement or other savings is what is sub-optimal. When everyone understands they have a choice and what it actually costs to slight one for the other, this important work will be done.
Allowing one's self to be "debt averse", without understanding the opportunity cost of taking that position, is not wrong or bad. Unless of course, your goal is to get to FIRE as efficiently as possible.
You can most certainly do what you want, but it would be completely un-mustachian to ignore the underlying concept because, "feelings." Perhaps in your situation, this was the best use of your cash, but an understanding that mortgages can be a great hedge against inflation and a powerful tool for creating wealth is important.
For the record, we don't have a mortgage. We bought this home with cash, after selling two mortgaged and highly appreciated homes. AND after accruing enough cash and investments to hit our FI number first.
I'm not at all against living mortgage-free, I just want people to understand feelings vs. math. It's just one of many mustachian concepts we teach each other on the road to FIRE.
Wanting to help people understand this concept should not be deemed any different than discussing the merits of cycling vs. public transportation vs. driving clown cars. Understand the risks/rewards, then make the most rational decision for your situation.