At one time or another almost all home owners have dwelled on the possibility of paying down the mortgage early, if only because they are disgusted with paying so much interest over such a long period of time. Remember that in the early years of the mortgage, roughly 90% of each payment goes towards the interest on the mortgage loan.  In other words, for the first few years that you have a mortgage, you are not paying any of the amount you owe off. Unfortunately, few people actually institute programs for quickly paying down the mortgage on the family home, and even fewer understand why this is such a good investment.

It's important to remember that almost all conventional mortgages have the possibility of paying up to 10% down on the anniversary of the mortgage date.  In other words, on the exact date that you signed the paperwork every year you're allowed to make a payment on the principal that has no interest attached to it. You can also pay off any amount of it that when you renew the mortgage itself.

However over last few years, most of the financial institutions that offer mortgages have made it even easier for you to discharge your debt quickly. Some offer open mortgages that allow you to pay off any amount of the principal at any time. A number of mortgages also permit more than one payment in a month, and these weekly or semimonthly payment schedules increase the amount of interest that is paid down annually. As well several institutions offer you the option of doubling up on any monthly payments of both personal and interest and in this way the extra payment at the end of the year will be applied to the principal.