How to be mortgage free after 8 years

Joe_Bloggs

@zag2me
I cannot see that many benefits in your Egg tracker. The rates I see are 5.49% ! If this was all you could get then you would be saving yourself money by overpaying. You are probably going to need money for emergencies and remortgaging in the future. I was on 6% offset before my overpayments (increased equity) and increased salary qualified for a 4.74% tracker with Nationwide.
J_B.

YorkshireBoy

Darryl wrote:

Just wish I could get the wife to see it your way. She's of the view that we might not live that long (although there's nothing to suggest this will be the case), so prefers the 'pay as little off your mortgage a possible' approach... Any tips on how to combat this view would be gratefully received!

This is easy! You tell her that you know she's the boss, and as such she should have the title of "managing director". You volunteer to assume the role of "financial director" - and as we all know, it's the accountants who run businesses these days isn't it!

When my wife got back into full time hours a few years ago after having the kids, she had plans for this and that, ie "stuff". I had other ideas and started overpaying a little on the mortgage - £50 here, £100 there. Things progressed from there and now, just a few years later, we're paying £700 a month on a mortgage that need only be £218.

The result is that we will pay off the mortgage on our second home (having moved here 11 years ago) in 13 years, 12 years early, and have no "need" for the £38K endowment which is due in 2019 (only on schedule to make £32K but that's a story for another day!).

Yes, it can be hard some months, but as someone else has said - if you set up a static payment you simply have to meet it and cut back somewhere else.

Please don't attack me for posting this - I'm not bragging as such. We had it rough raising 3 kids in the eighties and early nineties on one wage and VERY high interest rates. Our success now is simply due to two wages, some good mortgage deals over the last 4 years, and most importantly a desire to be debt free ASAP.

mrsw

I think that Thefunkygibbons approach is a very good one. I don't begrudge his ability to pay off his mortgage early at all. I have an offset mortgage, and also overpay each month - not a vast amount, but it does make a difference. Combined with the money we offset (including a heathly stooze pot), we are currently on track to pay off 15 years early.

shaymenRup

The essence of this thread is for everyone, the specifics are not.

Overpaying vast chunks of your mortgage is fantastic, we overpay several thousand pound every year.

To afford the nice house we have got, we morgaged to the hilt (suffered for one year -then with pay rises/ promotion it got easier)

The secret is though the best of both worlds. Saving enough, but not strapping yourself of cash. Foreign holidays are sometimes desperately needed when you have a high pressure job.

The added bonus with overpaying - is also (mortgage dependant) having the safety net of a payment break if you need it.

Knowing someone in a similar position to Funky - a lad who married, paid off large swaithes of his mortgage every year and also bragged about having no mortgage in 7 years time. Unfortunately he didn't invest much money into his marriage. He divorced, got a new girlfriend, who wanted a new house and then a new baby and he's back where he began. Not saying that will happen to everyone, but it is swings and roundabouts.

Thefunkygibbons

:eek:

He he

Not allowed to get divorced

I'm Catholic

skintchick

As TFG knows, I have been so inspired by his story and this thread (nasty comments notwithstanding) that I've decided to pay my mortgage off early too.

To avoid barbs from people who think I have loads of cash, I don't. I earn £20,000 a year. Although my mortgage IS small at £52,000 (had it for seven years already, parents helped me buy) I've struggled in the past because I live alone.

But no more. I have a lodger moving in on October 1, and as of then I will be overpaying by £218 a month. It's not loads, but it's what I can afford, and will help. Once my car loan terms ends in Feb 2007, I'll chuck that £173.67 at it as well.

See - we're not talking huge sums.

I would never have considered this before reading TFG's story and receiving his help on other threads, so I personally am very grateful to him for his sensible advice.

Thefunkygibbons

Very kind

I guess that is why the board is here

Hope the lodger works out well

skintchick

Ooh, we're just a mutual appreciation society!

Sue1973

Just wanted to say thank you to TheFunkyGibbon for this inspiring thread. :T :T :T
Have been thinking about overpaying for a while now but not got round to doing anything about it.

I finally rang the Nationwide yesterday and set up a direct debit for £100 per month. Estimated saving - £9,500 and 3 years.

Now, each time we get a salary increase, we will look to increase the overpayments by the same percentage and, make lump sum overpayments if and when we can afford it.

Also, the T&C's say that the minimum overpayment is £1. I am going to keep my mortgage account number in my handbag and, each time I pass a Nationwide, if I have any spare cash I can pay it in there and then!!

YvonneT_2

Firstly, just wanted to thank TheFunkyGibbon for his inspiring story.

I have a question though: I have made a couple of extra payments to my Abbey mortgage (repayment) and was told by them to make sure that I wrote on the back of the cheque "capital repayment to reduce the term of the mortgage".

Is there a difference then between what other people on this forum have been doing, ie. overpayments and what the Abbey have suggested I do (capital repayments).

I really want to be debt free in the most effective way - like all of you !

Thanks for the help.

Yvonne