By Derek, on November 17th, 2017%  I met Alex about a year ago when he reached out to me for the first time. He had recently started a website (like I always encourage ALL of you to do) and wanted to reach out to, and help, as many people as possible. I agreed to let him write an article for me, and quite honestly, it was fantastic. Since then, he’s reached out again. And this time he had even more material – the top reasons to pay off a mortgage early! Check out Alex’s awesome post below and the special offer at the end. Enjoy! Top Reasons to Pay Off a Mortgage Early When we paid off our $400,000+ loan in only 6.5 years we saved a boat load of money. Money that we’re now getting to keep for ourselves instead of paying it to the bank as interest. A handy rule of thumb is . . . → Read More: Top Reasons to Pay Off a Mortgage Early – by the Mortgage Mutilator By Derek, on July 17th, 2017%  You paid off your credit cards, student loans, your car. You saved up a solid emergency fund and now you’re investing 15% for your retirement. Holy crap, you’re rocking it!! And now it’s time to start paying off your house! Woot woot!! FYI – If you’re not quite up to this step yet (ie. you still have consumer debt), be sure to use this debt snowball tool for help! And then come back to this post when you’re in a better position to slay your mortgage! How Fast Could You Pay Off Your Mortgage? Alright, so now you’ve got a 15-year, a 30-year, or maybe even a 50-year mortgage (hopefully not though!). What if you started throwing some extra money at it? How quickly could you pay it off? I bet you’d be surprised! Related: Should You Pay Off Your Mortgage Early? In January of 2015, I made the decision . . . → Read More: Free Mortgage Payoff Calculator – How Fast Could You Pay Off YOUR Mortgage?? By Derek, on July 7th, 2017%  You just received a $100,000 inheritance (Woot woot!). You want to be smart with it…so buying a Ferrari is out of the question. But should you pay off your mortgage early? Or, should you put the money into the stock market to earn more interest over time? This is the age-old question… Should You Pay Off Your Mortgage Early? Ask almost any financial advisor and they’ll tell you to put your money into the market… Here’s their reasoning: You’re likely paying just 4% (or less) interest on your mortgage loan, and the market has historically earned 7-8%. Thus, it only makes sense to put your money in the stock market and earn more. The interest on your home is tax deductible, so it makes more sense to keep it and save money on taxes. It sounds completely logical at first, and many people go along with their reasoning (including members . . . → Read More: Should You Pay Off Your Mortgage Early? By Derek, on May 26th, 2017%  “If I refinance my house today, I could save an entire percentage point in interest! It’s a no-brainer, right?!” Ummm…not necessarily…. Just because you can save 1% on something doesn’t automatically mean it’s a good idea, ESPECIALLY when there’s an up-front cost of doing it. Should You Refinance Your Mortgage? Just a few months ago, rates for a 15-year and 30-year mortgage were 2.7% and 3.4%, respectively. Today, since the Fed has decided to raise the interest rates, mortgage rates have followed suit and stand at 3.18% and 3.95%. So the big question is: With mortgage rates on the rise, should you refinance your mortgage? Well, just like almost every decision in this world….it depends…. How Much Does It Cost to Refinance Your Mortgage? So many people go into a mortgage refinance completely blind. They know they can save on interest and that it’s probably the right thing to . . . → Read More: Interest Rates Are Going Up, Should You Refinance Your Mortgage? By Derek, on May 12th, 2017%  Buying your first home can be an exciting time. You’ll read up which are the best parts of town to live. You’ll check the styles of homes available. And then you’ll start comparing prices and checking mortgage rates. Sounds simple, right? Just find your dream home and sign for a mortgage… What Type of Mortgage Loans Are Best? But buying a home is a huge investment. Mortgages may seem like a simple concept, but there is much more to them than most realize. Will you apply for a fixed or adjustable-rate? Is an FHA loan right for you? Is there a penalty for paying off your mortgage early? These questions can be overwhelming, but picking a type of mortgage loan doesn’t have to be. To keep it simple, here are five of the top mortgage loans, complete with their pros and cons. Fixed Rate Fixed rate mortgages are a budget . . . → Read More: Buying a House? What Type of Mortgage Loans Are Best? By Derek, on May 1st, 2017%  “How long have you been living in the area?” asked the dental assistant. “Well, I’m officially making my last mortgage payment this month,” the grinning male patient responded. “Oh! So you’ve been here for 30 years, wow!” This interaction seriously made me throw up a little. Debt has become such a normalcy in our society that people are starting to mark their live’s events by it! (FYI, the norm wasn’t always a 30 year mortgage. People used to take out short term loans from the bank to pay for their homes, and then they paid cash for upgrades and increase acreage as they went along.) I don’t know about you, but when people ask me about my life, I want to tell them about my kids, my travels, my experiences. NOT my long-term debts. How to Pay Off Your Mortgage in 5 Years or Less I started paying off my . . . → Read More: How to Pay Off Your Mortgage in 5 Years or Less! By Derek, on March 31st, 2017%  I graduated from college at the age of 23 and was worth -$10,000. Over the next 7 years, I married, divorced, remarried, and still came out completely debt free (including the house) by the time I turned 30. How the heck did I do that? How to Get Completely Debt Free by 30 I honestly didn’t think I was doing anything that spectacular at the time. Sure, I was a little more aggressive than most, but was I super-human in my efforts to pay off my student loans, my credit cards, and my house? Nope. Absolutely anyone could have done what I did over those seven years. Looking back, I attribute my financial success to the following reasons – all of which you can implement and use for your success as well! 1) I Got Scared Everything was new. We just recently graduated, found an apartment, and were living on . . . → Read More: How to Get Completely Debt Free by 30 By Derek, on August 19th, 2016%  This is a guest post from Pauline from InvestmentZen.com You become financially independent the moment your investments yield enough money every month to cover your expenses. You can then decide to stop working and enjoy life, although most people simply decide to slow down a bit, while remaining active. If you are financially independent in your early 40s or even 50s, the perspective of laying in a hammock sipping cocktails all day long for the next 50 years is actually a bit depressing. But in order for your investments to cover your expenses that early, you need to focus on two things: Spending less Saving more The less money you need in order to support your lifestyle every month, the quicker you can quit your day job and focus on what is really important to you. Getting rid of your mortgage seems like a great idea in order to get . . . → Read More: Pay Off Your Mortgage Early and Become Financially Independent By Derek, on January 11th, 2016%  The following post comes from Will who writes at Growing the Green. We share similar views on personal finance as a whole, especially when it comes to decisions about debt. I invited him to post after reading some of his views on paying off the mortgage and how different factors play into making a decision on whether to pay down mortgage debt or to pursue other investments. Enjoy! Pros and Cons of Paying Off the Mortgage Early A continuing discussion in personal finance is whether or not to pay off your mortgage early. Let’s take a look at some of the big discussion points and offer some insight. Why you should pay it off early 1) Improved Cash flow Paying off the mortgage puts you in a very powerful position. It frees up cash to make other investments that build wealth while also allowing you to live on less money . . . → Read More: Pros and Cons of Paying Off The Mortgage Early By Derek, on March 16th, 2015%  Last year I spent every waking moment thinking about paying off my mortgage. “How am I going to pay this off by the end of the year? How can I save more money? How can I earn more money?” At times, it was probably unhealthy, but I learned a ton during that 2014 year, both about myself and about others. Here is a compilation of everything that I now realize after paying off my mortgage. 1) You Will Relate to NO ONE In that first month I was extremely excited to do everything possible to succeed in paying off my mortgage. I knew it was unconventional, so I tried not to tell too many people, but I just couldn’t help it! I still remember the first guy that I told. I was at work and we were having a conversation around personal finance and debt – that’s when I let . . . → Read More: 5 Things I Learned While Paying Off My Mortgage | Top Resources on this SiteAffiliate Disclaimer:We are a professional site that receives compensation from the companies whose products we recommend. We test each product thoroughly and give high marks to only the very best. We are independently owned and the opinions expressed here are our own. Disclaimer: LifeAndMyFinances.com has entered into a referral and advertising arrangement with Wealthsimple US, LTD and receives compensation when you open an account or for certain qualifying activity which may include clicking links. You will not be charged a fee for this referral and Wealthsimple and LifeAndMyFinances.com are not related entities. It is a requirement to disclose that we earn these fees and also provide you with the latest Wealthsimple ADV brocure so you can learn more about them before opening an account. |
