I strongly support the intent of this thread and the strategy of growing personal wealth, as long as everyone fully understands their decision and respects those who chose other paths.
The thing I love about this thread those like it, especially as championed by B42, is that this approach tends to get little respect. People just don't understand the math. The emotional response to "kill all the debt" because "all debt is bad" is fine if your hair is on fire with sukka consumer debt. However, if one is solvent and desires to create wealth, that approach is simplistic, at best.
The vitriol spewed by debt-haters on this (and many other sites) is epic. I salute B42 for their diligence in promoting what is surely a more efficient path to FI. Long live B42!
To use a gambling analogy, keeping an affordable mortgage in order to stuff other financial vehicles is kind of like playing the Don't Pass Line in Craps*. The odds are better, but you're playing against the rest of the table. It takes a surprising amount of confidence to do this, but that's where the best results are. And OMG, is it fun!
*Don't worry, I don't actually play craps any more, but I had a group of friends (including BF) who liked to go to the casinos after a day of snow or water skiing, back when I was in college. I figured out that if I was going to do this, playing the Don't Pass Line in Craps with full odds was the way to go. It was fun, interesting, and I pretty much broke even. One of the hallmarks of true Mustachianism is to be able to play the part if/when desired, without becoming an actual sukka.
And here's a P.S. to get us back on track:
Frankly, I don't give a flying fuck about how great anyone says it "feels" to pay off a mortgage. What is a far better feeling is to know you have enough green soldiers to RE ~and~ pay your mortgage off
any time you feel like it. That, as more and more people are learning, is true peace of mind and amazing power.