Scrimp and save to pay mortgage off or live now?

2 no question

I agree with the poster who said 1.5. BUT I'd pay £40k off the mortgage and invest £20k. If a job is lost, there's then a tiding over fund if necessary. Also, you are only 50 and you have to live.

I’d do 3, living a simpler life and having more time to be with the people you love and do the things you love is worth a lot.

If you think moving to the country would have a really negative impact on your kids well being then I’d go with number 2 until they’re older and off to uni and then do 3.

Absolutely 💯

Having lost two close friends and a relative in the last two years in their fifties I'd say live for now.

I wholeheartedly agree

2 definitely. Take the kids to the theatre, take them on holiday, do stuff together, finish early and just chat. They will be leaving home soon.

Bit of both. Over pay a bit but enjoy life. You could be dead tomorrow and your family will just remember you working all hours in a job you dislike rather than fun memories of doing whatever you want

I think it depends on what you call living your life?
I lived mine while I paid off the mortgage and actually found I was much happier without all the "stuff"
The constant wheel of more?

I got off it

Oops posted too soon
I realised that working long hours to buy stuff was not for me

Settled on a happy medium, zero debt, mortgage paid off.
This is life and happiness, just not the " happy life" that the advertisers think you should have

Are there good jobs and schools in the country?
And a lower paid job doesn’t necessarily mean easier or short hours..
There will be grandchildren eventually - it would be nice to be retired or part time then.

Option 2. You will have paid it off before you retire? You will hopefully be in your early 60s in good heath, older children and lots more free money, that doesn't seem that bad. You can always pay more in if you are able each year, but restrictig yourselves so much to paying off in five years instead o ten seems pointless.

If it was just you and DH I'd say 1 or 3

But as you have kids,
go for 2.

They really aren't young for long.

I don't think teens would want to uproot to the countryside, so keep that for when they have left home

Live your life.

There's no guarantee you will be in good enough health to enjoy life when you've finally paid off the mortgage, so live it now.

Having read your update I think 1.
You're eating well and doing stuff - just not going over board.
We did 1
4 kids.
Ate well
Paid bills.
No exotic holidays, or brand new cars. Etc
Paying the mortgage off is a great feeling.

Same boat as you OP, we’re doing 2 with a view to doing 1 when everyone has left home

If you have the ability to knock £80k every year for five years off your mortgage, why not knock £50k off for eight years and have £30k a year for nice holidays and teenage trests?

It would be 1 for me. You don’t know what’s going to happen with your health and you’re getting to the age where it would be difficult to find similar level rôles if made redundant etc. Pay down the mortgage and focus on being able to retire at a sensible time.

Agree. Fun with kids while they are still young is reallly important but so is security. Usually with mortgages if you overpay then you can “underpay” in the future without penalty. (Check the wording on yours.) I would aim to get to maybe “1-2 years ahead” as that means that if one of you is made redundant then you have breathing space. But keep having your mountain bike holidays.

Do they bike with a club? Are they on the BC pathway? (From experience) that is an excellent way of solving a “how do I spend my money” problem.

I’d do 1.5. Pay mortgage off in 7.5 years and have moderately exciting holidays.

2 for sure

you need to enjoy the time with your kids! And you’ll still have the mortgage paid off early (?) 60s. Sounds like you are financially comfortable so it’s doable.

3 all day long for me . Life’s too short!

2....the teenage years really whizz by. I wouldn't ever move London/urban teenagers to the country. And I hate the idea of living super-frugally just to pay off the mortgage if you don't have to - life's for living now. Our youngest is at university now and we'll pay off the mortgage next year when our fixed rate ends. I feel a bit robbed of the 'great holidays with teens' thing as Covid interrupted that, but we did still some fantastic road trips and city breaks with them, by accepting that paying down the mortgage could wait. We're still only in our mid-late 50s and not retired yet; actually we've found our (demanding) jobs easier now the dc are older. No regrets.

In your position, I would aim for 7.5 years.

A bit of balance - still allows for some fun money bit not an unnecessary amount.

For me, 1 is what you do before you have children and 3 is what you do when you retire. Save some, spend some is what you do in the middle.

2 and then 3 once the children are grown, at uni, off doing their own thing.

Enjoy your life and your children now,