Meaningful Returns

A true statement: if you make extra mortgage payments, you can save money on interest over time and pay off your loan faster.

Another true statement: if you don’t make extra mortgage payments and instead use that money to invest in the stock market for the life of the mortgage, there’s a really good chance you’ll have more money in the end.

A third true statement: Neither of the previous statements constitutes “the right answer” on its own, and the reason for this is that they only consider money. People have feelings about debt, the stock market, and their homes, and all of these feelings are strong. Advice that ignores these feelings is suboptimal.