Only 2 more payments!

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jeffrefrig

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Well, we signed the papers for this place January 30, 2004 (I think the 30th) and moved in during a snowstorm. After Dec. & January the 30-year mortgage will be paid off. This is a first for me, sorta. Our old house was already my wife's when we got hitched and it got paid off when we sold it about the same time, but this place is OURS, so I'm gonna be happy sometime in January '22. I'm just excited about it, especially paying it off about 12 years early, if my math is turned on.
I could not have done this without having a good union trades job where they make us have annuities proper union wages. Plus, working for the PGH Public Schools put me in an excellent pension, also.
If there are any young people on the Forum or some of your sons & daughters, you don't have to push for a college degree. There are a lot of trades jobs coming. If you can get into Steamfitters, Electrical IBEW, Plumbers, Operators, Teamsters, etc., do yourself a favor. Trade School. What ever you want, it's out there. $$$$
 
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Paid off home rocks!

Congratulations!

I never went to college, maybe that's why I was more frugal than my sibling - college educated and up to their neck in debt. Paid our home off a couple years back. Now we can retire.
 
Paid ours off in 12 1/2 years. We both were working, and we sacrificed a lot to get it paid off. I made a EXCEL spreadsheet to show interest/principle paid each month, it helped to keep us on target.

Congratulations!!

Have a blessed day,

Leon
 
Congrats on the payoff!

Trades are currently hurting for people and it's the fault of our public school system. To the schools line of thinking, everyone should go to college or else work for minimum wage - period. When I went to school, it was in an automotive town (Pontiac) and the school system had excellent voc-ed training from junior high on up. Wood working, drafting, printing, electrical, welding, automotive and machine shop. While teachers/councilors steered smarter kids to college curriculum classes, they didn't dissuade them from shop classes either. Later when budget cuts came because of tax revenue lost when the auto plants closed, voc-ed and sports were the first casualties.

At the time, I administered the apprentice program at Pontiac. We made the sales pitch to the school board that a student could have a choice: pay for 4 years in college, and get a median paying college job of $30k or spend 4 years in an apprenticeship, get paid hourly wages, get paid for going to class tuition free, get free benefits like health care, dental and glasses, and graduate to a job where they could easily make $60k a year. We even offered to come to the schools and talk to the kids. Their reply: thanks but no thanks. :mad:

During that time, we had a kid from Detroit apply for the program who was in the top 5% of their graduating class. She didn't pass the test. It happens. The test isn't easy, but at the time, any one graduating with B's should at least pass, if not do well enough to be accepted. Thinking it might have been an off day, I reached out and told her I'd be willing to recommend some study materials if she would like a second chance in 6 months or a year. She said no thanks, the test was too hard. Her statement made me realize that our school system was headed to a really sad state and the intervening years has borne that out to be true.
 
Yes, I was never going to make it in college back in the '70s. Just glad it worked out when the steel mills all went down. I just regret not doing trade school sooner, but it all worked out. The main thought about this post was to suggest getting a trade if you're young or have children or grandchildren who aren't sure what they want to do, but know they don't want the expenses of college or aren't cut out for it. Some unions' apprenticeships train you so you don't even need to go to trade school, too. There's a lot of work out there and a heck of a lot coming up. Good luck to all the future HS grads.
 
To those who are at the beginning of a home loan. I paid off my original mortgage by simply rounding up the principle payment to the next even $10 or if very small to the next $20. My budget was based on 4 pay checks a month, when there were 5 the amount for the house payment went for principle in the next payment. A 30 year loan payed off in 15.5 years!

Ivan
 
When I started a Home Loan (back in 1977), every time I got an increase in salary, (either a COLA or merit inc.) I put 50% of that increase into my house payment, and the house was paid off way sooner than the 30 year loan. My current (condo) house I paid cash for from the sale of the previous house, and savings. Debt free is the only way when you are retired.
 
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