This is a guest post from a Navy physician/officer who paid off his $407,500 mortgage in 2 years. He is now financially independent as he no longer has debt and has more money to invest every month!
Do you have an epic side hustle or debt payoff story to share with us? We’d Love to Interview You for Millennial Boss.
1. Please tell us a little about yourself in a few sentences.
I’m an active duty Navy physician/officer who is financially independent and blogging about personal finance for military members and veterans at Military Millions.
2. What was the total amount of debt, type of debt, and how fast did you pay it off?
$407,500 mortgage paid off in 2 years.
3. How did you acquire the debt in the first place? Do you regret doing so?
I took out a VA home loan to purchase my current house. In the end, I regret doing so. I should have just paid cash for the house and avoided all the fees since I paid off the mortgage so soon after taking it.
4. Describe the moment you decided that enough was enough, you needed to pay off your debt.
My asset allocation called for having a large 6 figure amount in bonds, but it didn’t make sense to me to carry a mortgage a 3% while also having this large amount in bonds paying 3%. So I paid off the debt…
5. How did you end up paying off the debt? Please be as specific as possible. Describe the choices you had to make during this time. Did you have a good quality of life?
I simply sold assets in my taxable investing account and used the proceeds to pay off the mortgage.
6. Did you have a plan for paying off your debt that didn’t work. Why did it fail?
Nope.
7. Can you describe a time where your friends, family or significant other challenged your plan to pay off your debt? How did you deal with it?
There are certainly a lot of debates about paying down your mortgage vs investing instead, but these debates assume that the person will actually invest instead of just blowing it on a car, computers, or whatever else people want.
8. Describe the moment that you made your last payment on your debt. When was it? What did it feel like?
It was a massive pay off amount, and it is one of the best things I’ve done in my financial life. Once you no longer have a mortgage, it just opens up your monthly finances and frees you up to invest even more than before.
Related posts: 11 Savings Trackers to Visualize Your Debt Payoff Journey
9. What resources (books, blogs, videos, podcasts) inspired you as you were paying off your debt?
The White Coat Investor is my go to blog.
10. What’s next for you now that you are debt free?
I’m just building my assets for retirement in 4-13 years, depending on how long I want to stay in the military.
Are you currently in debt? Here are three things you can do.
- Get an idea of how much you owe, to which company, & the interest rate.
- Start tracking your expenses (we use the free app Personal Capital).
- Eliminate temptation on convenience spending by becoming more organized – batch meals, bring snacks, etc.
We’re looking to feature entrepreneurs or those who have paid off student loan debt. Sign up here to Get Featured on Millennial Boss Feature Friday.
Have you paid off debt? Share it with us below.
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Huzzah for being free from debt 🙂 a mortgage is not for everyone.