The totally off-topic thread

[JohnK]

Looking forward to the trip report

Hoping the trip report is a very brief one line update.

Still trying to see if I can get QF/EK flight to SIN/BKK cheaply or as an award. No luck so far.

 

[Foreigner]

Think I can bite my tongue for a few hours?

Or grit your teeth

 

[RooFlyer]

Another good reason to visit Iran (as I will be next year ) They've banned Pokemon Go

 

[Steady]

I paid off my mortgage today - woohooo

 

[Foreigner]

I paid off my mortgage today - woohooo

Good on you...the interest clock stops ticking

 

[pagingjoan]

Another good reason to visit Iran (as I will be next year ) They've banned Pokemon Go

Hope you are not planning a visit to the U.S. soon after your Iran trip. The "dance" is, in my very recent exoerience, strenuous!
Now about to test the follow on. Will report back.

 

[GarrettM]

While he may have well practised optic skills, a certain quality assurance is required. What is his % hit rate?. There really is only one way to be sure..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQNkeugaAMc

 

[cove]

Thank you GarrettM.....real and spectacular are pretty good concepts. I get emails from an 85 year old Californian male and I think he must think about these concepts daily.

 

[penegal]

I paid off my mortgage today - woohooo

Congratulations Steady

Now, for the renovation to expand your wine cellar

 

[penegal]

Another good reason to visit Iran (as I will be next year ) They've banned Pokemon Go

Iran is definitely on my list. I look forward to your TR.

 

[GarrettM]

I paid off my mortgage today - woohooo

Congratulations Steady I am sure it's a great feeling, and one I hope to have one day.

Right now I will settle for paying off the parents' mortgage, and see what happens after that.

But the house is at least on the market, so we inch closer.

 

[cove]

Ok just my thoughts on a home mortgage.
If you may one day need to re-draw your mortgage it could be cheaper to leave a balance of say $200 rather than have the costs of starting a new mortgage.

 

[JohnK]

Congratulations Steady

Now, for the renovation to expand your wine cellar

Why not put a bed in the wine cellar and use the rest of the house for storing wine?

 

[Steady]

Ok just my thoughts on a home mortgage.
If you may one day need to re-draw your mortgage it could be cheaper to leave a balance of say $200 rather than have the costs of starting a new mortgage.

I toyed with this and then decided bugger it.

I wonder what missing mortgage repayments for 12 months - even if the balance was only $200- does to a credit rating?

 

[cove]

Steady let me congratulate you. A Mortgage free home is a very nice position.

 

[Quickstatus]

Good on you...the interest clock stops ticking

But ticks even more slowly albeit in the other direction

 

[coriander]

At first I thought he must have X-ray vision but I concluded he had spent years developing his skills. Maybe I have spent too much time on making frequent flyer points and too little time on the finer points.

I think it's all to do with the upper half concave or convex - fake is generally convex (personal observation of the "fine points" whilst walking the dog along Kerferd Road beach in summer :shock: !

 

[coriander]

I paid off my mortgage today - woohooo

Well done. I always had an ambition/dream/determination to be debt-free by the time I was fifty - as I signed the transfer papers for our current home one day before my 50th, I realised that I hadn't paid off my credit card. Raced into the bank and paid off the cc so that I was debt-free on the birthday. Mind you, we went out to dinner that night and put the dinner on the card, but it was great for a few hours!

I too looked at keeping the mortgage, but unCommonwealth wanted a $200 half-yearly service fee to keep the mortgage alive -no thanks.

 

[penegal]

It really depends on your personal circumstances. I agree with cove, it can be good to keep a mortgage alive so you can redraw against it, but there are also costs with doing so depending on your product.

If not, there is something to be said for "saving" and "investing" what you would otherwise put into the mortgage. You will suddenly find you build up a good little investment portfolio and have some cash stashed away for a rainy day.


Naturally this post is not financial advice.

 

[penegal]

Or perhaps you should buy an investment property and negatively gear it... Given that's so topical in AU at the moment