I am not a money guru, but my wife is. She built the house in 97 and she would pay a half payment extra a month. I don't remember when she originally planned to have the house paid off. When I came along and our monies combined she doubled the payment. The house has been paid off for almost 10 years now. Our vehicles, motorcycles and camper is paid for. We do not carry debt, period. I follow my wife's plan, she pays for everything on a credit card and pays that card off every month. We do no let that debt ride month to month, as such no interest is paid. We usually get a few grand in cash back at the end of the year. Not too shabby since we don't pay interest. And since we are debt free, she pays the max amount in to her retirement accounts. What works for other people may not work for you. Take what advise you can and apply to your needs as you see fit. Good luck.