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Mortgage

June 6th, 2006 at 01:47 am

My only debt is my house. I am wondering if those out there think it is a good idea to really attack this debt aggressivly and pay off the house.I go back and forth. I did put extra money on the principal last month...... the first time I have done that. Part of me wants to get it paid down as fast as I can. My mortgage is ridiculous as far as monthly payments. When I say ridiculous I mean vey very reasonable. My ex is in the motgage industry so we had the best deal possible. He was very shrewd and knew how to get the best rate going. I just think I would like to try to sleep at night knowing that the house is paid for.
I have read many web sites and blogs and I see that half the folks say pay it off and the other half say.....stupid idea.I know as a single mom I watch for tax issues too----again...not sure what to do.

I was curious to know what your feelings were on this. I don't want to bore you with details....maybe I am intersted to see what people think about house payments in general. I also do not mean pay it all off on Saturday......I am thinking ----adding a little extra money here and there when I can.

My youngest one graduated from Kindergarten tonight. It was a nice ceremony. There are only about 14 kids--we have a small school.The teacher is retiring....so of course she as crying a flood and so were the parents. The kids thought we were all strange I guess!
Eveyone enjoyed the ceremony and all the special words of love and encouragement. My daugher looked cute in her cornflower blue dress. Her sis (Happy 14th Birthday) did her hair....curled with a rhinestone barrette. What a wonderful night of memories.

8 Responses to “Mortgage”

  1. boomeyers Says:
    1149567902

    I agree, pay it off! So you can claim it on your taxes.... if your rate is that great, it is'nt doing you a whole lot of good. Pay off the mortgage and then use that money to invest later!

  2. frontporchmom Says:
    1149591268

    That is certainly my line of thinking as well....or that seems to be the way I am leaning.
    I also have a religious conviction as well that I am not to be a slave to the lender. That tends to weigh deeply on my mind and spirit.
    Thank you for the words of wisdom......it helps to hear them.

  3. campfrugal Says:
    1149595524

    Paying down a mortgage will keep you from paying all the interest, which is always a good idea, but on the other hand, getting the tax write-offs is good also, although they are minor because you are getting the tax breaks from the interest you paid on the mortgage. Personally, I think no interest is better than getting tax breaks on paying interest.

    You will still be paying for property taxes, which you will get to use as a tax write-off. There are other ways to get tax credits and sometimes using those credits actually brings you less money back in a refund. Example: My husband's car is used for work, we had over $2000 coming to us until I used my husband's car as a write-off with mileage and gas, brought us down to $0 dollars refunded. You can bet we didn't claim that deduction.

    So, with that said, pay down your mortgage and invest that money in other areas like mutual funds, stocks, vacations, ING and IRA's. Good Luck.

  4. Yvonne Says:
    1149598631

    If you aren't totally comfortable playing agressively off on the mortgage then for some reason its not the right path for you right now.

    But what about a compromise. 1/2 of any savings where you normally put it these days but change and put the other 1/2 on your mortage. Then after 6 months re-evaluate.

    My suggestion still allows you to build savings but also to tacke the mortgage and get it paid off earlier. Sometimes its fun to play with one of those mortgage calculators an see the effect of paying off $100/$500/$1000 early. Quite often it can take months of payments off you mortgage over the years.

  5. Ima saver Says:
    1149601444

    I had a paid for house by the age of 32. I cannot tell you how good it makes me feel to know that I could never lose my house. I did borrow to buy a nice piece of property, a year and a half ago. I am paying extra on the principal every month. I borrowed $62,000 and only owe $30,000. I should have it paid off in less than 30 months. Great feeling!!

  6. fern Says:
    1149603171

    I agree with the others, tho i'd be curious to know what rate you're paying now.

    Tax benefits are fine, but i don't think they should be the driving force by which you make your decision.

  7. frontporchmom Says:
    1149605093

    My interest rate is 4.3750%
    My divorce decree never stated or required me to re-finance. My husband did not care because he (and she) had moved on and purchased a new home one town over. He wanted me to "have the house"-no questions...he was happy to unload it and be done with it. His name remains on the mortage. I was OK with that. He wanted the kids to stay stable and stay in the home they grew up. So my lawyer advised me to not do a thing and perhaps pay off the house sooner then later. I had called this bank before hand and asked the rate they would of perhaps offered me. It was much higher of course ---plus they frowned on me "not working" for 16 years. I would be considered a risk I guess.

    I think my interest rate is pretty good.

  8. Broken Arrow Says:
    1149697917

    Your interest rate is incredible!

    If your lawyer thinks it's OK, then it wouldn't hurt pay it off early. Actually, I would've done that if I was in your shoes. My only advice is to be sure you get his consent in writing (and preferably certified), as there isn't any legal consequences to him if he should change his mind.

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