Mortgage Payoff Club!!

[talltexan]

Frizzywhiskers-
congratulations on knocking on a gigantic mortgage. I would argue that principal paid to the mortgage would already count as savings. But this difference of opinion is so minor that it should not take away from me acknowledging you as a Bad-ass!

[Bird In Hand]

I would argue that principal paid to the mortgage would already count as savings.

Indeed!  I often include principal payments (whether part of P&I or additional) when assessing our yearly savings.  We are relatively late in our mortgage schedule, so the principal payments are rather large and make our savings rate look a lot more impressive.  :D

[Money Badger]

5 years and $435,000 later . . . the mortgage is finally gone.
It's done ... it's over….terminated, mutiliated, mission accomplished!
It feels amazing and unreal all at the same time.
Our savings rate is about to triple…..we are 2 years from FI…..
shit is about to get real...

Oh, just Hell yeah to this!!    Frizzy-on-FI-yah!

[frizzywhiskers]

Thanks everyone - it is pretty exciting to have it done!  I'll be here to cheer on the next group of graduates!

[JustInStarting]

5 years and $435,000 later . . . the mortgage is finally gone.
It's done ... it's over….terminated, mutiliated, mission accomplished!
It feels amazing and unreal all at the same time.
Our savings rate is about to triple…..we are 2 years from FI…..
shit is about to get real...

Congratulations frizzywhiskers! That's a huge accomplishment.

[K-ice]

My SO just put a large enough payment to cut our mortgage (HELOC) in HALF. I'm supposed to match them.

But ... I'm not completely convinced in a super fast payoff as it is on a rental property and we can deduct the interest. 

Also, our tax advantaged investments are not maxed. (TFSA & RRSP)

My SO agreed I can invest the money in our joint account, then we will split it into our tax advantaged accounts. So the pressure is on. (pressure in a fun rivalry sense)   I don't have all the cash on hand, but I have about 60% and should be caught up by Christmas.






 

[ender]

We started our mortgage payoff savings account recently. :)

[MaybeBabyMustache]

We have a vacation house & I'm actively trying to pay off the mortgage. Starting balance was $330K, and we're down to $217K. I'm super excited to get below $200K, and am trying to hit that in 2018. I only use extra funding (e.g. money that was unexpected, side hustle, random rebates/checks, etc) for this, so it will be tricky. But, I'm doing it! It would be great to free up the $1K or month a so of mortgage payments as we get closer to FIRE

I decided to put a month of stock vests into the mortgage, and now have it down below $200K. We are at $199K! Woohoo. I'm excited to think about how quickly we can pay this down, now that we crossed below the $200K mark.

[Money Badger]

End of June update...   Just around $43K.   And pitching in another ~$1K this next pay period just to hopefully be "sub-40K" at the closing table (which is likely to be higher than the car loan balance of whomever buys our place)...  Strange how the mental game works at this stage... Crossing each $10K interval is such a win!

End of August update... $41K and some change as we stay the course...   House still on the market so we'll break the $40K level by the time we move.   I hate houses and especially mortgages with a zeal not seen since... well... the Spanish Inquisition...   Wait for it...   

"And nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!"

[Comar]

56k left!

[Megs193]

I’m so jealous of these low balances!  Our payment for September just hit and we are down to $419,000.  My husband is expecting a bonus on a Friday so I am planning on putting that towards the mortgage and getting it below 400k. I set a new goal to pay off the mortgage in 5 years which is definitely possible as long as we stay focused.

[Money Badger]

@Megs193,   Keep the faith and actively keep on the same page with your S.O. on the interim goals you guys agree to, the required lifestyle trade-offs and how to handle windfalls (and setbacks) along the way...  $400K in 5 years is totally doable with teamwork!   Celebrating annual milestones along the way helps as well.   And depending on cost of living in the area and stage of life, a "rightsize" in house at some point might make you feel like you won the lottery...   It's an interesting emotional/near-spiritual journey through the stages towards FI for sure!

[dacalo]

I’m so jealous of these low balances!  Our payment for September just hit and we are down to $419,000.  My husband is expecting a bonus on a Friday so I am planning on putting that towards the mortgage and getting it below 400k. I set a new goal to pay off the mortgage in 5 years which is definitely possible as long as we stay focused.

Keep going! We have $619k at the moment and it looks insurmountable.

[Megs193]

My husband got his bonus this month and we decided to put most of it towards the mortgage. We put $50,000 toward the mortgage and our new balance is $369,000. I would love to get the balance below $350,000 by the end of the year but that is definitely going to be a major stretch. My spending has been at an al time low though. Even my husband has commented on how few amazon packages have come and my target bill has been below $50 for 3 months in a row.  I got one pedicure all summer and then just repainted my toe nails, I’ve stopped going to Starbucks unless I’m meeting a friend to sit and chat and I’m actually cooking the food I buy. These all sound so basic but for years I didn’t really think about the money I spent because our HHI is high and I didn’t think I needed to. I’m starting to see how much changing my habits is making a difference.  My original plan was to pay off our mortgage in 5 years and I think we will likely get it paid off in 4!

[Trifle]

My husband got his bonus this month and we decided to put most of it towards the mortgage. We put $50,000 toward the mortgage and our new balance is $369,000. I would love to get the balance below $350,000 by the end of the year but that is definitely going to be a major stretch. My spending has been at an al time low though. Even my husband has commented on how few amazon packages have come and my target bill has been below $50 for 3 months in a row.  I got one pedicure all summer and then just repainted my toe nails, I’ve stopped going to Starbucks unless I’m meeting a friend to sit and chat and I’m actually cooking the food I buy. These all sound so basic but for years I didn’t really think about the money I spent because our HHI is high and I didn’t think I needed to. I’m starting to see how much changing my habits is making a difference.  My original plan was to pay off our mortgage in 5 years and I think we will likely get it paid off in 4!

You're doing great!  Making loads of positive changes.  Keep up the good work!

[twistedfirestarter]

We only have a small mortgage as we moved from a HCOL area to a much lower one 20 miles down the road. I wasn’t too fussed about rushing to pay off the remaining mortgage but it turns out this is what it took to get Mrs Twisted 100% behind living frugally and squirrelling our money away for the future.

Although she understood the FIRE methodology it was an abstract concept which only lead to numbers changing on the computer, paying off the mortgage is much more tangible. It’s also ingrained into the British psyche that “bricks and mortar is the best investment”.

[Money Badger]

End of September update, sold more stuff and saved more shekels and added more equity...   Balance under $40K.    House hasn't sold so looks like we're camping for awhile.   Money badger don't care.   Marching onward till the mortgage is DONE!

[Bird In Hand]

We only have a small mortgage as we moved from a HCOL area to a much lower one 20 miles down the road. I wasn’t too fussed about rushing to pay off the remaining mortgage but it turns out this is what it took to get Mrs Twisted 100% behind living frugally and squirrelling our money away for the future.

Although she understood the FIRE methodology it was an abstract concept which only lead to numbers changing on the computer, paying off the mortgage is much more tangible. It’s also ingrained into the British psyche that “bricks and mortar is the best investment”.

I can certainly relate to this.  My wife is far less interested in the ins-and-outs of savings/investment/FIRE than I am.  She's on board with FI and maybe RE, but the savings/spending discipline required to get there was left mostly to me.

It was always a tough sell to build up after-tax investments, since she would view that as a potential kitchen renovation, landscaping fund, fancy vacation, etc.  She's also a bit more risk-averse than I am.  The FI strategy that we are both comfortable with was a combination pre-tax contributions and paying down the mortgage.  We've done a ton of the former and a bit of the latter.

[Bird In Hand]

End of September update, sold more stuff and saved more shekels and added more equity...   Balance under $40K.    House hasn't sold so looks like we're camping for awhile.   Money badger don't care.   Marching onward till the mortgage is DONE!

lol @ Money badger.

Sounds like you're going to camp/rent until your house is sold?  Are you downsizing to FIRE, already FIREd, starting a nomadic expedition, or other?

[Money Badger]

@bird...   Yep, camping in the current "big house" till it's sold which will eliminate debt.  Then will  put the net equity after closing to work for us at last to generate further passive income.  Thinking I'll change my handle from "Indentured..." to "Money Badger" at that point?    The goal is FIRE in 2021 linked to when youngest kid finishes her bachelors.   At that point, shift to the "in it for the benefits" job till age 65 along with some sustainable athletic/cardo regimen...   Already developing an MMM "biking habit" as a start... Easy access to greenways with biking and walking trails is an objective to stay fit and happy in FIRE.

[Trifle]

@bird...   Thinking I'll change my handle from "Indentured..." to "Money Badger" at that point?   

@indentured4now, I think you should change your name now -- that's the best handle on the forum.   :)

[talltexan]

I like the title money badger.

MB don't care; money badger just takes what it wants!

[ChesterT]

This is my first post in here, but it won't be my last! :)

I recently purchased a home and then sold one, so today I was able to put an extra $83,017 on to my principal. They will do a recast on my new mortgage for me for a $300 charge, and then my payment goes to less than half. I'll keep paying a bit extra each month, but also build up a bit of cash, add an IRA, and start taxable accounts because of the low payment. I already max out 401k.

I really wanted to buy a house debt free, but a guy high on meth broke through my dining room window one beautiful Saturday morning while I was asleep and I decided to head for the low crime rate area instead. I'm so happy I did, and my payment will be low enough to give me much more freedom. Woot!

Also, I know I'm new, but - Money Badger is definitely a title I hope to hold someday. Badassity at it's finest!

(I've been reading this thread for months, so happy I get to post today!)

[Trifle]

This is my first post in here, but it won't be my last! :)

I recently purchased a home and then sold one, so today I was able to put an extra $83,017 on to my principal. They will do a recast on my new mortgage for me for a $300 charge, and then my payment goes to less than half. I'll keep paying a bit extra each month, but also build up a bit of cash, add an IRA, and start taxable accounts because of the low payment. I already max out 401k.

I really wanted to buy a house debt free, but a guy high on meth broke through my dining room window one beautiful Saturday morning while I was asleep and I decided to head for the low crime rate area instead. I'm so happy I did, and my payment will be low enough to give me much more freedom. Woot!

Also, I know I'm new, but - Money Badger is definitely a title I hope to hold someday. Badassity at it's finest!

(I've been reading this thread for months, so happy I get to post today!)

Welcome @ChesterT !  Sounds like you're doing great.

[ScottsdaleSaver]

September 2018 - $196K! We met our goal of breaking $200K by the end of summer. Fighting lifestyle inflation and kicking my husband's raise into savings and/or mortgage payoff, so hopefully we start really picking up speed now...

June 2018 - $217K and I'm writing another check to principal for $5K tonight. The pay for grant work isn't in yet and the promotion happened and the higher pay rate kicks in this week (yay!). We're hoping to break the $200K mark by the end of the summer.

March 2018 - $227K  We made some good headway over the last quarter thanks to my bonus. We anticipate a couple more windfalls in the next quarter - grant work for my husband - & perhaps even a large promotion which would really speed things up. Send some good juju our way!

Jumping over here from a different mortgage payoff thread that never took off. We started the path to early payoff in earnest this June with a (free) refinance. We're on a 15-year mortgage at 3.25%, but I want to knock this thing out in 5.

Big picture - I want to time the mortgage payoff with my escape from corporate life. Our investments are where I'd like it to be at this point. We'll continue to max out our tax advantaged accounts, but everything after that is going towards this.

June 2017 - $254K
July 2017 - $251K
August 2017 - $248K
Sept 2017 - $245K
Oct 2017 - $244K
Nov 2017 - $241K
Dec - 2017 - $237K

[ChesterT]

Thank you, @Trifele!

Nice work, @ScottsdaleSaver! The lifestyle creep is so sneaky sometimes.

[paulkots]

Finally made a decision to really start trying to pay off the house. With my calculations, I am going from a 15 year mortgage to a 6 year, I will try do it in 5.

[Money Badger]

@Trifele and TallTexan,   Thanks for the encouragement.   And y'all talked me into it...   As of this Friday, after 3 or so years of blood, sweat, recasting and principal payments, I'm sitting on liquid assets that we could use to pay off the last bit of our mortgage (ie, the last debt) if or when we want.   So goodbye Indentured4Now...   

Money Badger lives!  And you guessed it... He don't care!

[Trifle]

@Trifele and TallTexan,   Thanks for the encouragement.   And y'all talked me into it...   As of this Friday, after 3 or so years of blood, sweat, recasting and principal payments, I'm sitting on liquid assets that we could use to pay off the last bit of our mortgage (ie, the last debt) if or when we want.   So goodbye Indentured4Now...   

Money Badger lives!  And you guessed it... He don't care!

Hahaha -- Awesome!!!!

[Megs193]

We put $10,000 extra towards the mortgage in September so we are down to $358,000.  My goal was to be under $400,000 by the end of 2018 so we are way ahead of our goal. My original goal was to pay off the mortgage before our oldest went to college. He turned 9 this week so we should have it paid off before he is in high school!

[Money Badger]

@Megs193,  You guys are killing it!  Down from high 400’s earlier this year in May or so?   Now high 300s...    9 years is totally doable assuming a 6-figure family income and some grace (or windfall help) always along the way...    Just hang in there as the easy wins are used up... and keep the faith till it’s done.  It’s amazing (and yet just normal) to live FI afterwards.   Go!

[Megs193]

@Megs193,  You guys are killing it!  Down from high 400’s earlier this year in May or so?   Now high 300s...    9 years is totally doable assuming a 6-figure family income and some grace (or windfall help) always along the way...    Just hang in there as the easy wins are used up... and keep the faith till it’s done.  It’s amazing (and yet just normal) to live FI afterwards.   Go!

Thanks!  It is amazing how much having a goal of being mortgage free has changed the way I spend money. I have no interest in accumulating stuff anymore. I am proud of my 10 year old car and can’t wait to see how long I can drive it!

[Threshkin]

@Megs193,  You guys are killing it!  Down from high 400’s earlier this year in May or so?   Now high 300s...    9 years is totally doable assuming a 6-figure family income and some grace (or windfall help) always along the way...    Just hang in there as the easy wins are used up... and keep the faith till it’s done.  It’s amazing (and yet just normal) to live FI afterwards.   Go!

Thanks!  It is amazing how much having a goal of being mortgage free has changed the way I spend money. I have no interest in accumulating stuff anymore. I am proud of my 10 year old car and can’t wait to see how long I can drive it!

Being mortgage free was the single most mentally liberating financial move I made.  All the maths said don't do it.  Keep the low interest rate loan and invest the money instead.......NOPE.

By paying off the house I was able to instantly become stress free about income.  Without that large monthly obligation I no longer needed to worry about keeping my job which removed massive amounts of stress which wound up making me better at my job.  Reduced fixed expenses also moved my FI date up significantly and lowered my sequence of returns risk.

One cautionary note:  Don't rob from your retirement to pay off your house!  I only used after tax money for the payoff.  All tax exempt/deferred retirement accounts were fully funded first and not touched to make the payoff.

[TomSelleckJR]

We're down to 87k.
It was a MAJOR mental boost to see the balance drop below 6 figures.

We are targeting payoff right around the end of 2019.


Best of luck to everyone pursuing this goal.  :-)

[Megs193]

We're down to 87k.
It was a MAJOR mental boost to see the balance drop below 6 figures.

We are targeting payoff right around the end of 2019.


Best of luck to everyone pursuing this goal.  :-)

That must feel amazing. Congrats on getting it to 5 figures!

[Askel]

$2700 left this morning.  I'm planning my mortgage bonfire party already. 

[ozmickey]

I have been following on this thread for a while but not posting.

I have just returned from the bank and made the final payment on my mortgage!

Back story - bought the house in June 2014 and within a few years both my DH and I had been retrenched (with payouts).

Thank you former corporate overlords for paying off our house.

[frizzywhiskers]

Congratulations @ozmickey !  Nice work!

[ender]

I realized the other day that between our current balance and mortgage payoff-fund, we're about 13% of the way to paying off our mortgage :-)

[Askel]

Just made the second to last payment. Barring any surprises over the next two weeks, I'll be done on 11/9 (which is- oddly enough, my birthday).

[Askel]

And done (I think), although not really feeling the high. My mortgage was pretty small, so it was more an annoyance just having that around every month more than a significant impact on the finances. 

Anyway, mortgage payoff scenarios are clearly not test cases for my mortgage company's web developers.  I was in no rush to get this done, so rather than incur any fees in getting a payoff quote, I just went to pay whatever was left on the principal and let everything sort itself out in the next billing cycle. 

Except apparently you can't pay more than 95% of your remaining principal through the web.  OK, I'll just do that. I'll owe them $40 instead of $4 next month.   (I did consider being a jerk and paying 95% over and over until I got it down to 1 cent though.)

Log in later that afternoon to see it applied as a "partial payment" and a balance due next month of -$510. Uh... OK. Call customer service, they say they'll re-apply as a principal payment and it'll need supervisor approval which takes 24-48 hours. 

Supervisor must've figured it out. Logged in this morning to a "Congratulations, your loan is fully paid off." So I guess I'm done, although my payment history is now a warzone of small, inexplicable "partial payments" and "escrow payments".  Somebody probably gets to sort that mess out on Monday. 

Happy birthday to me. 

[couponvan]

Happy birthday!! Our mortgage will be paid off on Monday because we moved states and DH got a promotion. But don’t go congratulating me just yet because I have my eye on a shiny new one that would have a mortgage payment.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

Congrats @couponvan & @Askel ! (And, happy birthday :-))

We paid off our vacation house last Friday. (Double facepunches!) It was quite a surreal feeling to walk into the bank & make that happen. The wire happened quickly & by the time I got home, logging into our mortgage website showed a "balance paid in full" screen, which was pretty great.

We considered paying down our primary mortgage (very small rate advantage), but paying off our other loan freed up cash flow that we can now apply to our primary mortgage. Additionally, it was really motivating to seeing a balance of zero,and knowing we own the asset free & clear. Versus our primary residence, where adding the same amount would have barely moved the needle. (We're in the bay area, and real estate is outrageous).

We celebrated with a bottle of champagne & leftovers. As you do! :-)

[Angelhair]

Just requested a payoff letter yesterday.  Our last payment will be $421.18.  Should have the letter in the next few days and I can go to the bank and transfer the money.  Then the house will be all ours!!!!!!

[K-ice]

Someone I don't know well but who rents made a comment to me the other day.
"You probably own your own house."

Shrugged and lied, "Well the bank does."  I wouldn't comment to most people that our place is paid off.

We technically still have a HELOC with balance approaching zero but that is all for a rental property. I am also playing in the Don't pay off your mortgage club with that loan. 

We were able to pay off our primary residence in about 6y. You Mustacian's are really the only people we can talk to about this.  ;) 

[couponvan]

Paid off via sale $250k is now in investments. Rent is high though at $2,500+ for a fancypants corporate apartment in VA. Our lake FIRE house in IL is paid off for when we FIRE in 4 years.

[Megs193]

We made another $10,000 principal payment in addition to our regular monthly payment so our balance is down $333k. I would love to get it below $300k for a nice mental boost and I’m considering taking it out of our savings which is probably about 2 years of expenses right now. Does anyone see a downside to this?

[Nederstash]

We made another $10,000 principal payment in addition to our regular monthly payment so our balance is down $333k. I would love to get it below $300k for a nice mental boost and I’m considering taking it out of our savings which is probably about 2 years of expenses right now. Does anyone see a downside to this?

Keep 6 months emergency fund in savings, otherwise, go nuts!

[Money Badger]

+1!   Every dollar you sit on in the bank beyond a 6 month emergency fund, they are loaning to some other sukka at ~5% for a 30 year ankle iron.   Either put it on the mortgage with very low risk or invest it.   Otherwise, straddling the cash financial fence is painful.

[K-ice]

We made another $10,000 principal payment in addition to our regular monthly payment so our balance is down $333k. I would love to get it below $300k for a nice mental boost and I’m considering taking it out of our savings which is probably about 2 years of expenses right now. Does anyone see a downside to this?

Keep 6 months emergency fund in savings, otherwise, go nuts!

Agreed! Or if you have a HELOC and can easily use your house as "springy debt" and a 1-2 month emergency fund might even be enough.

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/04/22/springy-debt-instead-of-a-cash-cushion/