My grandparents built a house in 1950 and put literally every cent they had into paying it off. Four hard years later they were free and clear. They spent the next 40 years investing all the money they didn’t owe to a bank and they enjoyed financial freedom throughout their lives.

I had a chance to pay off my first home ten years into the mortgage but I used the surprise windfall to put a down payment on an investment property instead. I got in the game, and did well for a while, but then 2008 hit and I nearly lost everything. Had I paid off my primary house I would’ve been secure, and probably avoided my bankruptcy altogether. Hindsight.