After mortgage freedom

Sarsibob1

I am posting near the finish line. By april next year I should be mortgage and credit card free

A little about me

I am 42, husband 48. 2 kids who are 9 and 12. Husband is a sahd

Bought first house in 2007 with 109k mortgage. Moved out in 2010 to house 2 and got a new mortgage of 125k in addition to keeping house 1 and converting it to a btl. Moved house again in 2014 and upped the mortgage to 225k. We are in our forever home

Since 2018 I have paid off total mortgages of 335k. House 1 mortgage was cleared in 2020 and I will be clearing the 225k mortgage at the end of the year when my current fix comes to an end. Have managed that one in 11 years. I have been lucky with interest rates and am clearing this one when the 2.29% fixed rate ends as don't fancy the post Liz Truss interest rates.

I have overpaid mortgages since my first mortgage payment when I was earning 16k a year plus commission. I was fortunate in 2018 to have started a business which is doing very well and has enabled me to save a lot. I have been a saver all my life and mortgage freedom has been a focus of mine since 2007. I don't know how to switch it off. 

So for those on the other side - what do you do next? Do you just throw caution to the wind and become a spender?  I have always been frugal (not to the point that moths emerge when I open my wallet but I am a cautious spender and always looking for the best deal. 

My husband has always just let me get on with it. I don't think he knows how quite near the finish line we are. When I have cleared the mortgage and credit cards (have been stoozing 0% credit cards so have 20k on 0% credit cards which are interest free until april) I am going to tell him. I currently pay 2k a month into the mortgage which should be done by october so will redirect that to the credit cards when the mortgage is finished to have enough to clear them in april. It is his 50th in 2027 - I think we will be going to Mexico.

Anyway enough rambling - so I have been lurking here for years but not really commenting. Just to say hi and hopefully before too long bye. 

mebu60

Very well done you. 

I have been on the other side just over two decades. Still trying to become a spender! 

I built up savings and started investing too. Enabled me to retire at 54. That was a while ago too!  

What pension provision do you both have, private and state? 

Definitely do Mexico in 2027. And start squirrelling away for 2032/3 (depends when in year your birthday is!) holiday too :-)  

retiredbanker1

I was thinking of this just the other day!
When I had a mortgage - in my head - the house was an asset.
Now that I have paid it off - again in my head it is a liability - why? Constant bills -  The outside needs a coat of paint and if I could afford it I would replace the bathroom and decorate from top to bottom.  Retirement funds don't go far these days.

Sarsibob1

I have 370k pension and pay 1k a month in
Don't know how much is in my husbands but I pay 300 a month into his
Have 100k in s&s isa's 

I will probably pay 20k a year into s&s isa's when the mortgage is done. My pension is predicted to hit 1 mil by age 65 so I don't think I need to up the pension payments really. 

I also haven't had any inheritance. All parents and my grandma are still going. 

I think I have financial dysphoria - on paper I am very wealthy but I can't translate it to my spending habits. I have genuine anxiety about losing all I have built - maybe paying off the mortgage will lesson that anxiety a bit. At least I know no one can take my house away.

badmemory

retiredbanker1 said:

I was thinking of this just the other day!
When I had a mortgage - in my head - the house was an asset.
Now that I have paid it off - again in my head it is a liability - why? Constant bills -  The outside needs a coat of paint and if I could afford it I would replace the bathroom and decorate from top to bottom.  Retirement funds don't go far these days.

So taking that hint bung it into your pensions.  That is both your pensions so that any tax is shared @ 20% rather than one paying 40%

mebu60

There are several threads under 'Savings & investments' that explore the difficulties of spending. You are not alone! 

Given how efficiently you have approached everything else can we assume you have also ensured that the sahd has had his voluntary NICs payments made too for his state pension? I'm assuming too that's £240 net pcm into his private pension, the max for a non-earner, grossed up to £300 courtesy of HMRC.  

AgathaSquirrel

Wow - phenomenal progress.

I’m not at that stage so can’t really comment but I’ve occasionally seen Dave Ramsay clips with people saying similar. I presume you have savings in place for your children in case they go on to university? I think it’s ok to put some money aside as fun money at your stage but I appreciate it’s difficult to change your mindset.

in_need_of_direction

You have two soon to be teenagers. Prepare for skyrocketing expenses 

Sarsibob1

The children have about 20k each at the moment. The plan is also when they are at the age they need help with housing I will sell the btl, split it in two and that is a very nice deposit for each of them for them to buy.