Ran its course, now in the weeds.

Found a copy of our note from buying this place in 1990. Interest rate was 9.9%.
That was the going rate and nobody made a big deal about it.

Crazy to think back to the 80s when it was even a few points higher than that- I think my parents bought their first house at like 13-15% or something crazy. In that scenario, paying off a mortgage asap would be a no-brainer.
 
What era was this? Back in the 70s, for example, interest rates were much higher than today- that changed the equation significantly as well.
A thought came to mind.

What type of mortgage do you have?

I had an FHA mortgage, started in 2013 at, 4.25 i think. It had PMI which was about 15 percent of the total payment, and about 1/3 of the principal. Escrow amd interest ate up the rest.

We refinanced in 2020 at 5 percent on a real estate loan from the credit union. Had 85% LTV, so the credit union carried the whole thing. 10 year loan. Got rid of the PMI.

We have a little over 4 years left. Went from 300 or something going to principal. To 700 plus.

We do have to pay our own taxes and interest. So we are paying more per month, but no PMI, and shorter amortization.

I guess the point of all that was to see if you have anything going to fees and find a way to reduce or eliminate them ASAP, as that is truly wasted money, and the fasted rate of return. IMO.
 
Started as a conventional 30-year, roughly 5% (can’t remember)- refinanced during covid to a 15 year @ 2.75% (no PMI). I think we have around 10 years left.
I guess I got you and @Addicting mixed up.

But the question is for him as well regarding the pay off mortgage faster, or invest.

If there are fees or PMI in the payment, I think eliminating them entirely or paying down faster needs to at least be considered.
 
I guess I got you and @Addicting mixed up.

But the question is for him as well regarding the pay off mortgage faster, or invest.

If there are fees or PMI in the payment, I think eliminating them entirely or paying down faster needs to at least be considered.
No fees, no PMI, and the mortgage is paid off in the same time frame essentially. Just investing should leave me with 20k or so at 6% rate of return over the 10 years.
 
We paid our home off about eight years ago. We bought a different home with more property this spring. We had a mortgage for all of 4 months while we did some updates on the new house before we moved in and got the old house sold. I can tell you I hated having that mortgage. It was all mental i know. I couldn't be one of those people that carry a mortgage when they have the money to pay it off.
 
Or Healthcare, or vehicle prices.
Or childcare. Of course even in 1990 I think having a parent stay home was a lot more feasible option. Im not saying it was a cake walk for any generation but you've definitely got to figure out how to do more with less lately. Still have it better than some generations, no doubt.
 

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