[Russ_Boston]

Originally Posted by skyguy79

Presuming it was also a home closing in TV, congratulations! We hope to be joining you in a little more than three weeks if no hitches come up in our mortgage application... not that we anticipate any. Good luck on your new home!

Yes, Abbey Way in Buttonwood. Been planing this for over 6 years!

[Shimpy]

Originally Posted by natickdan

I agree that the majority of financial planners would suggest it is most ideal to be mortgage free going in to retirement. That's what our financial proposed almost 10 years ago and he helped put us on the path to pay off our mortgage.

Until we close in TV next month, we were one of the fortunate ones to be mortgage free. I say "fortunate" because I recognize this is not possible for many entering retirement - especially in the current economic climate. In that case, if you can afford the mortgage payment without compromising the type of retirement you want, then go for it.

As empty nesters, our plan is to sell our current home this spring and then use the proceeds to purchase a two bedroom condo in our town and then pay off our TV home. Again, we hope to me mortgage free next year. Until then, we can afford carrying the expenses on both properties.

Best of luck with your decision.

When we bought our home in Buttonwood we were going to pay it in full, but decieded to make a large downpayment and keep the rest of the cash in the bank. Cost us a little more in interest, but the interest is low and it's nice to know the money is there for emergencies should we need it. We'll never live long enough to pay off a 30 year mortage, but our heirs will have to worry about that. They'll still come out ahead.

[Russ_Boston]

Your heirs won't have to worry about it, they'll just have less proceeds when/if they sell the house. Granted you might want to leave them as much as possible but I wouldn't think of it in terms of burden.

[Tbugs]

Any real estate agent worth his license would tell you that the interior of the house has to look good before you put it on the market.

If the carpet is worn or stained, a buyer knows it will have to be replaced but may not have the money to do it right away so they will look at more houses. Go to an inexpensive carpet store like Empire and have them put in a medium priced carpet. It will look fine and a buyer will know it is good enough for a few years.

If the kitchen floor is old vinyl, have it replaced with a laminate floor. It will look much better and is not expensive.

Paint the walls in a neutral color. It is not expensive and makes it look fresh.

I also urge everyone to use BOTH a Villages Realty agent AND a non-Villages agent (like ERA Realty) in order to see properties in The Villages but not listed with Villages Realty. Buying a resale home makes sense, too. You can negotiate price, the bond is lower by thousands of dollars, mature landscaping, established neighborhoods, safer than the new areas by Wildwood, and no construction going on.

Add in a few thousand dollars of upgrades and you will sell the house much faster - thus not having to pay more than one mortgage when you move.

I did all these things - and sold my house in Maryland - during the housing slump of 2009 - at the asking price and in 8 days!!! If I had not done the upgrades, it would have been a lot longer I am sure.