Grinds my gears

When I started telling coworkers, friends and family that JP and I had a 5 year plan to pay off our house, it was met with a lot of opinions. Some wanted to know why I would financially choose to do this when my money could make more in the market, which is fine. But when I mentioned that we were going to put off major vacations for 5 years, it was met with gasps as if I just told them I was going to die soon.

JP and I have a 5 year plan to pay off our home. It is a very aggressive plan but I believe that we can do this. There will be hurdles that will be thrown our way and months that will not allow us to pay extra, but our plan remains the same. 5 years. 

Why are we doing this? For one, I really hate bills. We paid off all our student loans, car debt and consumer debt in 2016 and it was one of the most rewarding feelings. We were able to pay about $50,000 in debt in 8 months. We worked our regular full time jobs, picked up gigs, started a tutu business and really did anything we could like house sitting, pet sitting, etc to make this happen. A few months later we bought a house. We have enjoyed our lives the last 3 years in our house living our best life. I saw Taylor Swift in concert, went on many vacations, ate out at amazing restaurants and became wine snobs. We save each month but we could save more. In 2019 we had a lot of unexpected costs come up. We had medical bills for JP, we had to replace our fence and had high taxes owed. In bills alone, which includes, mortgage, cell phones, electricity, taxes, medical, water, etc, we had to pay over $55,000. That is a lot. In 2018, which was a normal year, we had to pay about $36,000. Our mortgage alone is roughly $16,000 a year. Could you imagine having an extra $16K a year? 

Our main reason to want to pay off our mortgage is simply financial freedom. There are many people out there that are at jobs they hate because they have bills they have to pay. Imagine a life without a monthly mortgage payment and how you would be able to change your work life. What if you have a spouse that wants to stay home with the kids and not work but they have to keep a job because of the bills. Imagine a spouse with a dream to start their own business but cannot because of the bills. Now imagine having zero debt including no mortgage and how that spouse could stay home or start their own business. 

Financial freedom is truly freeing.

So when we chose to share our goals, people had opinions. 

"You need to enjoy your life now!" - This comment actually makes me really sad. We do enjoy our life. We enjoy the small day to day things like running errands together, cooking new meals together, home projects, etc. So when others tell us that we need to travel now to enjoy our life, that makes me only assume that they cannot enjoy their life without traveling. Which is sad. Do I enjoy a vacation? Sure, but I would enjoy my financial freedom more.

"You need to invest your money because you will make more in the market." - Is it likely that I will make more in the market? Yes. We have a 3.25% interest rate, so yes, there is a high chance of making more. But, the weight off our shoulders from paying off our mortgage and truly being able to choose a different path in life is worth more to us.

"People die young and then they can't use that money they saved so you should travel now and enjoy your life now." - This is probably the most ignorant and most obnoxious comment of them all. Also, some people don't die young and don't save their money and memories don't provide a retirement fund. People live to be much older now and they are not financially prepared. I will also bring up the previous comment that we can enjoy our lives at home too. The oldest living lady right now is 117. If you think that 70 is old, you're wrong. Betty White is 97 and is one of the most youthful celebrities out there. And if you are in your 30s or 40s talking about how old you are... seriously? you are ONLY in your 30s and 40s. You could literally live another 60+ years. You are in your prime, think about how you want to live your life. For us, we want to live it in financial freedom.

"You will lose your tax deduction by paying off your mortgage, that is free money you are leaving behind." - Not really. Say we pay $10,000 in interest that we can now deduct from our total earnings and say we are in the 24% tax bracket, then we will lose $2,400, but you still pay out that other $7,600 to the bank. So, I gain money by losing $2,400. Do the math.

So, yes, people have their opinions. But it will not change our goal of paying off our mortgage in 5 years. Do I think everyone needs to do this? Not necessarily. I think it only benefits you but I wouldn't force this way of life on anyone else. This blog is our life and how we choose to do things and maybe it will just provide a different perspective than what you normally see or hear.

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