Am I the only one on gransnet still working & paying a mortgage?

DH worked till he was 71 - full time!

I paid a mortgage until I was 65, because of divorce; I have a friend. who is committed to paying hers until she is 70

Didn't retire until I was 74 (loved my job) but happily mortgage cleared. Just as well because council tax is having a fair attempt at replacing it.

We miscalculated when we bought our house and later realised that the mortgage would still have a year to run after DH retired. I retired at 60 to look after GS1 but everything was fine until DH became ill and couldn't work. Fortunately we got a lot of help from McMillan who pointed out that our insurance would cover us for a year's mortgage repayments and then suggested we changed to an interest only mortgage which gave us time to save for the capital we needed to pay off. Left to our own devices we would probably have gone into a total panic and lost the house.

I worked until I was 64 from age 16 Kandinsky I went for equity release 4 yrs ago and I haven’t looked back I’ve had so much fun renovating the house and giving some money to our adult kids I od off the remaking mortgage I even kept some back as an option for drawing down at a later date.
Sadly I had a stroke and the extra money I had left paid for a walk in bath and it’s taking me on holiday with a private carer.
Our kids didn’t mind at all, they said we worked hard all our lives and why not. It’s just like a mortgage roll reversal and we got the interest rate at a very low level the house is still ours or mine my poor dh is no longer with me and I can still get more equity if I want to I would recommend equity release it’s fun, by maybe not for everyone. Get financial advice .

Still working, not got a mortgage. We had an interest only mortgage and an insurance policy that paid up after so many years. .

Never really had a mortgage but still working. I love what I do, am self employed and have no plans to give it up as long as I can still work effectively, probably well into my 70s. DH is retired so does a lot of the domestic stuff as well as bits and bobs for my business.

I'm 60 still working full time and paying a mortgage. I became a single parent in 2006 so had to buy my Ex out of our house, his solicitor was much better and more expensive than mine and he was determined to make me suffer so I walked away with nothing. I have 5 years left to pay the mortgage off and 7 years left to work.
Then I will have the state pension to live on and nothing else. It was still worth it.

Im 79 this year. Retired from full time academic work when I drew my pension at 60. Did part time consultancy for a few years then went self employed which means I have no employer to answer to. Just myself.

63 still working still have mortgage. Husband 65 still working gets state pension soon but can’t afford to retire fully.

62, work full time, mortgage paid off two years ago.

I would love to retire now, but although I've not gone through finances with a fine tooth comb, I don't think I could afford to, and still have "a life". State pension isn't available until I am 66y 3m, but I hope to be able to retire before then.

I still run a business at 78 but no mortgage thank heavens. I am beginning to scale down the business but I cant ever see myself just being content to watch TV. I used to do a bit of market trading in the early 2000s so I might go back to that.

Does anyone have a proper plan to retire early at 60 and not work but not collect any pension before 67??

I don't like my job and want to leave, but can't even start to envisage how much I need to live on month to month.

How much do you budget you need to live on?

I'm 72 with a mortgage until 75 in a small house but am downsizing soon as tho I can afford the mortgage I cant afford future repairs and don't want to have to keep taking care of a house.

I am 70 and still working 24 hours a week in a high dementia care home.
I only have the state pension, which even though I don’t drink drive or smoke would be difficult to manage I fear. Luckily, I do enjoy my job and intend to keep working as long as I am able.

Its the uncertainty LemonZest of prices the must make it hard. I count upon my pension just about stretching as they go up.

Can you find a calculator on a money website?

Wyllow3

I'm 72 with a mortgage until 75 in a small house but am downsizing soon as tho I can afford the mortgage I cant afford future repairs and don't want to have to keep taking care of a house.

As you're downsizing from a small house to avoid future repair costs presumably you're buying a flat - do bear in mind the flat will have service charges which could amount to a few thousand a year.

Hi Kandinsky.. if you love your house I would try to keep it..Is it possible to work part time and/or take a lodger? or change your job.. something to make life a bit more bearable until you can fully retire..

I work part-time, and will continue until I get my state pension at 66. I stopped working full time at 58 and lived on savings until my occupational pension kicked in at 60. The mortgage was paid off a couple of years earlier though, which made a huge difference.

Is it possible you could contribute more to your mortgage payments - without penalty - to reduce the term?

Well, I think I could be older than anyone on here And still have a mortgage. I do have a plan, to get everything paid up soon though.

MiniMoon

We are still paying a mortgage and DH is still working. We are in our early 70s.
For many years we had an interest only mortgage. It was the worst decision DH ever made.

I made that mistake too. We were encouraged to get such a mortgage. Then we got compensation, and put on to a normal remortgage. Hope you got yours.

71 and still working part time, 20 hours a week on my laptop at home with very occassional office visits. I still love it so I'll keep going for a while, it is paying for house redecoration.

My house is mortgage free but for the equity release I took out 2 years ago to give my daughter a deposit. Best thing I ever did, she is very settled now and I got it at just the right time for the interest rate.

CrazyH, I never got alimony, didn’t know you could if you were capable of working. I raised two children without any money for me just voluntary contribution for our two children, which he never paid. To say it was a struggle is an understatement., but they both did well at school and have their own businesses now. There was no agency then that would trace an absent spouse.That was years ago though so things have obviously changed a lot. Trouble is I couldn't afford a private pension so I missed out there.

I’m 56 and still working full-time.
We still have 8 years of our mortgage (repayment type) left to pay so I’ll be 64 when it finishes.
We wouldn’t gain anything money wise by downsizing and also we have our son and his girlfriend living with us.
When the mortgage is paid off and hopefully my son & girlfriend have moved out I will reduce my hours and work 2 or 3 days a week.