So You Want to Live Mortgage Free

Most homeowners sign that home mortgage contract thinking that it will have hold on them for decades, but it doesn't have to be that way. By careful planning, saving, and cutting back on other items, it is possible to pay off a mortgage in fewer than four to five years.

Of course, many variables will determine how you want to go about doing that, including location, the amount of your mortgage, your interest rate and whether or not you've managed a large down payment, none at all, or anything in between. One must also take into consideration the amount of free cash you have on hand every month, whether it's $25 or $300 or more. Living mortgage free is not as impossible at it seems to many home owners, especially first time home owners, who may not have been able to put more than a minimum payment down on the house they've been saving up for, but with a little ingenuity and a lot of fortitude, it can be done. Here's how.

Two things about a home mortgage stand out foremost in most people's minds: the interest write off for taxes and that it may be the biggest investment in time, money and emotion that anyone will attempt in their lives. Owning a home is a very wise investment, but that doesn’t mean you have to be burdened by it for decades. As a matter of fact, more people are paying off their mortgages early than ever before. Why are they replacing their tax write off with the desire to be mortgage free? Because you only save about .70 cents on the dollar by using your house as a tax write off. As a tax shelter, it's not all it's cracked up to be. You can place that extra money in mutual funds or a Roth or IRA fund and do the same. So what's the next biggest reason to pay off your mortgage early? Because of the freedom involved! That and they want to use their money for more enjoyable things, and to save more for retirement.

That being said, how to do go about living mortgage free? Well, before you buy that old school bus and convert it into a home, consider paying extra on your monthly home mortgage payments. Just a little extra every month will save thousands and tens of thousands of dollars on home mortgage payments over the life of your loan. Just $100 a month, or even more if you can swing it, can shave off six years on your house payments.

When you pay off your home mortgage early, you can enjoy other benefits, such as having more financial freedom, having more choices what to do with your money, traveling, not worrying day to day about where your next payment is going to come from and a myriad of other pursuits. Financial security is a motivating factor that determines when many people retire. Instead of working until you're 75 so that you can pay off that 30 year mortgage, pay the mortgage off early and retire at 60, or even sooner!

These days, with health insurance and medical care costs soaring, the stress involved in trying to constantly make your dollar stretch a little further is growing more difficult. By taking charge of your home mortgage, and paying extra every month, whether it's $25 or into the hundreds, you are taking charge of your destiny and financial freedom. Sacrificing a little bit now may guarantee you the capability of living mortgage free in the not so distant future! Imagine paying off your mortgage in the next four or five years! Who wouldn't give it a try? It's not as difficult as you might think.

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