The dream of being mortgage free...

[InTheNameOfAllThatIsHonest]

I would love to be mortgage free. The idea that if I lose my job or things go pear shaped financially I may lose my home, terrifies me.

Can I please ask how old you were when you paid off your residential mortgage? Or what age you will be when you think you will have paid it off? I'm in my late forties at the moment, live alone, am the sole person paying my mortgage, and have another 20 years to go...

48, two years ago. Bought first house when I was 25 with ex husband, fortunately made a great profit in 7yrs, bought a larger house, divorced, sold old family house fir over twice what we paid for it, and split equity and bought my own place cash. Now moving away with current partner, and buying together, we won't need a mortgage fortunately as I'll have my share from this sale and he (56) is remortgaging his place which is rented out to drawn down his share.

Forgot to mention my flat is in outer London as we're previous houses and my partners place that he rents out is in central London and the rent is five times his mortgage payments so also provides an income. We are very fortunate but both had mortgages since mid 20s and no inheritance.

Was 52

I was early 40s, but I don't see how hearing what age other people were when they paid off their mortgage really helps you at all.

Anyway, I'd recommend overpaying if your mortgage terms (and your income) allow you to do that as you can save a lot that way.

Cleared it last year, both under 50. A few years ahead of the 15 yr term we had. Now trying to build up some savings.

I have twice as much saved as my mortgage amount. That’s enough for me. In this low interest environment I get bigger returns on my investments & so would like to prioritise that

We're committed to early 70's, currently mid 40's. On single income at the moment which we plan to change in about 2 years at which point we want to overpay to bring the term down.
Reading this thread is giving me the jitters as I don't like being committed so deeply for the same reasons as you op. What makes it OK is that the source of income is really stable and the property isn't bottom rung of ladder so worst case scenario we could take a step down to avoid being homeless.

We were 43 and 47 - downsized and bought a smaller house that left us mortgage free 8 years ago. Saved hard and we are looking to retire in 2023 aged 53 and 57. Plan is to rent our house out and travel the world living on 24k per year taken from rental car income and savings/investments. Can’t blooming wait

With current interest rates, there is no point paying your home off early.

If you took the money you would be overpaying and put it in a stock and shares ISA, you would be far better off in the long run.

This is because the interest you gain in a stocks and shares ISA will far exceed the interest you pay on a mortgage.

I was 41 but had been made redundant so although not a huge amount, helped us make that last push and pay it off. We'd been overpaying for years which was the main help.

Ive been paying a mortgage for 18 years and still have 24 to go 😩 but we've worked our way up on low incomes and me being a SAHM for a few years in the middle and now have our forever home (until we need to downsize!). We started in a tiny grotty flat in a crap area and now live in a 4 bed house in a crap area 😁

45 but it's a very modest place. I am ploughing money into mortgages on investment properties now for my retirement planning.

Forecast to be age 70. But might downsize before then if kids leave home…or charge them rent so I can retire!

Haha going by this thread the average mortgage free person is about 40.

In the real world a lot of people are taking out 30 year mortgages at age 30+.

I'm one of them, but I'd like to be mortgage free by 60, if possible.

Ours will be paid in 3 and 1/2 years . I can’t wait . Will be not quite 50 . We live in a very small house but hate the thought of adding to it by moving. Would rather have the security of knowing it’s paid ( we’ve had a very Rocky time over the last 18 months due to the effect of COVID on husbands job)
Am trying to pay off any debts we have as well so in the not too distant future I’ll not owe a penny to anyone

I lived through interest rates of 15 %, so carried on paying the same amount when rates dropped - shaved many years off of the mortgage.
Even overpaying a small amount every month helps a lot.

59

I could have paid it off years before that but with interest rates so low, it didn’t make sense.

45 after inheriting some money when my mum died. That was 10 years back. Plan is possibly to move from London to cheaper to release equity and retire.

Visit mortgage free wannabe on money saving expert forum. Lots of advice and motivating people.

We're both 54 and were mortgage free last year, it was due to an inheritance though. It does feel good to know that the house is all ours and it's given us a lot of freedom.

We were mid forties and helped by (not what it seemed at the time) a reasonable redundancy payoff as well as savings.

I'll be mid 43 when I pay it off and I can't bloody wait.

A little over 43* no idea where mid came from.

I was 42 and DH was 44. We overpaid for years so had £100k left on our £325k house and then my parents gave us a lump sum to pay it off. Very grateful!

@Egghead68

Got my first aged 41 and paid it off by 48. Got another at 49 and paid it off by 51, partially with an inheritance. It is a good feeling but I realise I’ve been very fortunate.

Wow! Was it a very small amount to be paid off in seven years?