Should I pay off my mortgage early?

Determining whether to pay off your mortgage early can be both an emotional and financial decision. If your mortgage is one of your highest monthly expenses, paying it off early may sound like a good idea to help you save money on interest and eliminate a costly monthly bill.

But do the numbers add up in terms of what you’d save? And if so, how can you successfully shave years off your mortgage?

Should I pay off my mortgage early

There are a lot of factors to consider when deciding whether to pay your mortgage off early. Before making any financial decisions, make sure you step back and see the big picture before you pay off your home. Here are five questions to answer to help you make the right decision.

1. Does my mortgage have a prepayment penalty?
2. Will I still have money for emergencies?
3. Am I behind on retirement savings?
4. Do I have other debt?
5. How important is this goal to me?

1. Does my mortgage have a prepayment penalty?

One of the first things you might want to do is contact your mortgage lender to see if there is a prepayment penalty. With a prepayment penalty, you could be charged an extra fee for paying off your mortgage early.

According to Consumer Finance, prepayment penalties normally apply if you pay off a large amount of your home loan or your entire balance at once within a certain number of years. Usually, this penalty can be worked into the terms of original loan terms, so it’s important to check and make sure you fully understand the terms if a prepayment penalty exists.

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2. Will I still have money for emergencies?

Paying off your mortgage early is no small feat. If you decide to do this, you’ll also have to continue paying for all your other expenses including home maintenance and repairs. It’s important to make sure you have an adequate amount of emergency savings lined up. That way, you can be prepared for any unexpected expenses along the way.

3. Am I behind on retirement savings?

When you pay off your mortgage early, you automatically save money on interest. However, you may be able to earn more from your money by putting it to work somewhere else - like the stock market.

Consider whether committing to paying off your home will cause you to halt or stall other goals like investing in your retirement and diversifying your portfolio.

“Most Americans have inadequate retirement savings,” says Dominique Henderson, a certified financial planner. “If you’re in that boat, you may consider foregoing the acceleration of your mortgage and instead use extra funds for investment to play ‘catch-up’ in your retirement plan.”

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4. Do I have other debt?

Mortgage interest rates are typically lower than with other types of debt, so it makes sense to pay off all your consumer debt first. This includes accounts like your auto loan, student loans, and credit card balances.

5. How important is this goal to me?

Owning your home outright can provide peace of mind by knowing that no one can take your house away from you. If this makes financial sense for your situation, then you’ll want to move forward with this goal.

How to pay off your mortgage early

After answering all of those questions, you may be confident in your financial decisions — including the choice to end your loan term early. If you're ready to move forward, here are some easy ways to pay off your mortgage early and save some extra money.

1. Refinance your mortgage
2. Switch to bi-weekly payments
3. Live on less than you earn and commit to paying extra

1. Refinance your mortgage

Refinancing your mortgage can help you save thousands on interest and even shorten your repayment term. If you refinance a 30-year mortgage to a 15-year fixed-rate home loan, your monthly payment may increase but you’ll be able to pay your home off earlier.

You’ll receive up-to-date mortgage quotes from top lenders and you can compare quotes and cost breakdowns to find the best offer for your situation.

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2. Switch to bi-weekly payments

Do you get paid bi-weekly? If so, split your mortgage payment up so you’re making bi-weekly payments instead of paying the entire amount once a month. There will be some months when you receive three paychecks and this will allow you to pay extra on your mortgage.

If you keep doing consistently over time, you can shave years off your mortgage repayment without even thinking about it.

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3. Live on less than you earn and commit to paying extra

See if you can lower your living expenses to free up more money to put toward your mortgage. Go through your budget and see which expense categories you can cut while still living comfortably. Maybe you can cook more at home and order take out less, lower some of your insurance premiums, or downsize to become a one-car family, for example.

Then, make a conscious commitment to pay more than your minimum mortgage payment each month. When you’re making extra payments, make sure it’s going toward the principal balance and not taxes or insurance.

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Getting started

When deciding whether to pay off your mortgage early, it’s important to consider three main factors:

• Your financial goals
• Your values
• What makes sense financially

“Since each dollar spend can only be spent once, you have to consider if the peace of mind for having no mortgage outweighs growing your retirement nest egg,” says Henderson. “This is a ‘values and goals’ decision and, therefore, won't have the same answer for each person. Although there isn't a necessarily wrong or right answer (from the traditional sense), there is certainly an answer that could be wrong for your situation.”

However, if you are learning toward paying off your mortgage early, you can start by doing things like switching to bi-weekly payments or shopping around for a refinancing quote.

Use a mortgage payment calculator to see how much you could save by refinancing and realize that even putting a little extra money toward your mortgage can help shorten your loan, so you can retire your house payment earlier than expected.

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