Payoff the Mortgage or Invest?

[GeauxLSU]

Where did you get the HELOC? Dang!

Yeah. Not gonna find that anymore.
It is with Wells. I keep a small balance just so they don't close it!

 

[SchmittZoid]

Lol you may have guessed I'm a numbers guy.

Unless you have a better crystal ball than most . . . .

Pay the mortgage.

This ∆∆∆∆∆

I'll say this.

The peace of mind you'll get by having the house paid off is wonderful ……. each day, every day.
You can't put a price on peace of mind.

Also;
Look into getting an Equity Accelerator package with someone.
You pretty much pay 1/2 a mortgage payment every 2 weeks, which keeps the interest down.
You will end up paying at least 1 extra mortgage payment every year, which also helps.
(The nicest thing is it's super easy to change how much they take out, so when times are good you can have them take out more and when times are lean, you can back it back down.)

My 30 year mortgage was paid off in 13 years this way and I credit the Equity Accelerator package I had (with Chase I think) for making it happen.

(You're certainly not going to get any peace of mind hoping the invested money has a good return...)

Good luck!

This. ^^^^^^^^

 

[SchmittZoid]

Better yet, refi to a 20 year mortgage and prepay against that.

Then you will be looking at a paid off house at 64 if you don't have the discipline to pay it off sooner.

I paid mine off in 2009 when I was 51. Took out a 20 year mortgage when we bought it in 2000. I was 42 when we bought it.

 

[YOTESHOOTER]

Pay the house off because in all reality it is an investment!!!

 

[rustyboy]

Everyone has a different timeline and goal. A few things to consider that kind of were glossed over.

Before considering investing outside of retirement vs. mortgage, max out you and your spouses Roths. Tax free withdraw after 59.5. This means any investment gains between now and then are +20% or so. When you get to that age, you can withdraw it all, pay no tax, and payoff the house.

Make sure you and spouse are in 401k upto match at least. Free $.

 

[sparked1]

You’re going to get a bunch of different opinions but the math doesn’t lie. The longer you wait to start putting that money into a compound-interest growing investment the more you will lose. Especially when borrowing money at 4.5%.

Figure out how much extra you want to pay on your mortgage and then use that number to calculate the return at an annualized return rate of 7 to 10% over the number of years it will take you to pay off the mortgage. Then determine which is higher- the interest savings or the compound interest gains. Nothing says you can’t do both, but prioritize the investment.

It might feel great to attack that mortgage first, but don’t let emotion dictate these types of decisions. Do the math. And unless you have a really high interest on your mortgage, the math almost always says to invest first

 

[cjnowell72]

Pay it off

 

[WallsGa]

Pay off the house.

 

[toobaroque]

Hold on a minute, let me work up some numbers for you!

Yep, just like I thought... PAY OFF THE DAYUM MORTGAGE!

 

[jeep78]

In my situation (I know, everyone is different....) I was working 12 to 14 hours a day 6 days a week and making good money. Until I turned 53. That is when I severely injured my back and was out of work for 2 months.

Tried going back to work just 8 hrs a day/5 days a week. Hurt again, out 4 weeks. In the end I could work 9 hours a week, tops, and my income is a fraction of what it was, and is not ever coming back.

My brothers invest and ridiculed me for paying for my home first. I would have been screwed if this had happened and I was heavily mortgaged.