REWahoo
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give
OK, maybe 'paying down the mortgage' is more accurate...
I thought this quote from a related article was an interesting observation:
Why?Americans are paying down their mortgages. According to Freddie Mac, a record 50% of all refinancings in the fourth quarter of 2010 resulted in smaller loans than the previous mortgage. These are "cash-in" refinancings, the opposite of the cash-out refis of the late, lamented housing boom. Until the collapse of housing, cash-in refis never really exceeded 20%, but, since 2009, they have consistently been higher.
Paying Down the Mortgage - Barrons.com...some of this comes from necessity. With reduced home values, refi applicants often need to put in equity to meet loan-to-value requirements. But the bigger factor is thrift. The millions of boomers headed for retirement want to conserve their wealth, and paying down the mortgage can be a good way to do that.
I thought this quote from a related article was an interesting observation:
America's baby boomers, the largest and richest generation in history, are entering a new phase of their lives. With retirement approaching fast, the boomers are adopting the fiscal habits their parents were known for. (We all eventually become our parents, it just took the boomers a little longer than past generations.)