Should You Pay Off Your Mortgage in Five Years?

Jun 06, 2023 By Susan Kelly

Paying off mortgage gives you actual property ownership and mental and emotional relief. Additionally, it gets rid of one of the most significant monthly payments that the vast majority of families face. Suppose you can pay off your mortgage fast. In that case, you will have more money for other priorities, such as retiring earlier, sending your children to college, or purchasing a second property.

There is a lot more to it than that. Although it can seem like a fantastic plan, trying to pay off your mortgage in less than five years might not be the most effective tactic for you. Before you embark on this course of action, you should examine your whole financial situation to ensure you won't be unable to meet your other commitments and fulfill your other objectives.

The following are some of the most typical approaches homeowners use to pay off their mortgage in less than five years. The first thing you need to do is determine how much money you will need to spend each month to achieve your objective. There are a lot of free mortgage calculators available online that you may use to help you figure out what your new payment will be.

Come Up With the Money

When you have a definite cash amount in mind, you will be able to pinpoint potential new sources of funding that will allow you to scale this financial obstacle. Although completing all of the procedures outlined below won't guarantee your success, doing so could help you reach your goal.

Spend less money and stay true to your financial plan

Most families will need expenditure reductions and strict adherence to a financial plan to pay off their mortgage in less than five years. Because we want to pay off the mortgage quickly, we will suffer soon to benefit in the long run. You could even conclude that some of those prior acquisitions were made more for their entertainment value than their use.

Boost your monthly income

There is a possibility that some homeowners may not have sufficient income to be able to pay off their property within the next five years. They must, however, keep working towards their objective and not give up. Your goal may become a reality if you increase your income by taking on a second job, being promoted, or finding new employment. In the present labor market, several opportunities are available for people to earn additional money on the side, and many workers are successfully doing so. There are many free online courses accessible on the internet that you may take to improve your chances of getting a promotion or landing a new job.

Establish a mortgage payoff fund

You might establish a mortgage payback fund by investing the additional money you have each month in a brokerage account rather than making additional payments on your mortgage. This gives you greater flexibility if you change your mind, lose your job, or experience another emergency. In addition, you can get a return on your investment that is larger than the interest rate on your mortgage.

Specific Ways to Pay Off Your Mortgage

When you have the financial means to get started, you have several options regarding how to complete the task. The list that follows includes some of the methods that successful attempts have relied upon in the past.

Refinance to lower your interest rate

One of the primary things preventing you from paying off your loan total more quickly may be the interest you pay on your mortgage. If you still have a high mortgage interest rate, you should consider refinancing to make it more manageable. This will allow more of your monthly payment to pay down the debt.

Recast your mortgage

When your lender recalculates monthly payments based on the existing amount and remaining mortgage term, this process is called a "recast." After making a large one-time payment to bring down their principal amount, a significant number of borrowers approach their banks with the request to recast their mortgage. Alternately, some borrowers ask for their loans to be recast after paying off a significant portion of their debt ahead of schedule by making several relatively modest payments.

Make biweekly payments

Most mortgage payments made by homeowners are done every month. On the other hand, some astute borrowers divide their monthly mortgage payments in half and pay that amount every two weeks so that they end up making one additional payment every year. Mortgage payments made every two weeks help you pay off the loan more quickly and cut down on the total amount of interest you have to pay over the life of the loan. In addition, paying employees every two weeks is consistent with the frequency of their paychecks every two weeks.