How do you pay off your mortgage early?

Answer 1

Homeowners trying to pay their loans early can send extra payments toward the principal.

The best way is to set up a schedule to pay something extra toward the principal every month. The more you pay against the principal the more payback time will be eliminated and you will pay less back. You should check with your lender first to determine is there are any penalties for making extra payments toward the principal. Also, make certain the extra payments are being applied correctly by monitoring your statements regularly. See related links.

There are several ways, but to expand on the comments above, paying extra every month is the best way to go. On a 250,000 mortgage at 5% for 30 years, paying just $200 extra per month reduces the number of monthly payments by 89, or 7.42 years, and reduces the interest and total paid by $65,736.37.

Paying $300 extra per month reduces the number of monthly payments by 118, or 9.83 years, and reduces the interest and total paid by $85,805.87. That shortens the length of your mortgage by 1/3 and saves a bundle in interest.