A message from the other side!

Escapar2020

It may seem like a long slog, but to anyone just getting started, it's worth it! Keep overpaying if you can. 

I technically became mortgage neutral in 2019, 9 years ahead of the planned mortgage term, but have recently decided to pay-off the remaining balance five years early. I'd worked out that the early repayment charges would be less than I'd be paying in interest over the remaining term, and probably have been for a while so it's worth checking on that if your a few years from the end of your mortgage and have some cash stashed away. My monthly repayment was about £240, so I don't need to find that every month now. This is the first month where I won't have a mortgage payment going out and, maybe it's because the spring sun is shining, it's a good feeling!

Would I have done anything different? Not in terms of over paying the mortgage, but it would have been good to think a bit more about retirement planning and pay more into pensions/investments to retire early. I did start to put much more into a SIPP and workplace pension when I became mortgage neutral in 2019, but up to then had been focussed on clearing the mortgage. As it is now, I need to still keep working for a few years, so being mortgage free doesn't mean being free!

beanielou

Well done on being mortgage free.
It is a great feeling 

savingholmes

Congrats on getting to mortgage free. Glad you have been prioritising pension recently - it all helps. I'm focusing primarily on pension as it can given an on-going income or lump sum which is beneficial and there are major tax benefits.