Need advice in personal finance.?

I have 4 more yrs left to pay off my mortgage. I plan to retire in 10 yrs. I have $40000, and it is enough to pay off my mortgage.


1. do you think it is a good idea to pay off? and may be in a few years I can buy another house/condo and rent it out?


2. exchange this place with a nicer house? I know I have to pay sell taxes and closing costs and remodling expenses for the new house. May be it is too late to start a 30 yr mortgage again? I'm 51 yrs old.





How should I invest my 40000? Thank you in advance.Need advice in personal finance.?
That money should be in your retirement account especially if you only have 10 yrs to go.Need advice in personal finance.?
It all depends on how much you have for retirement.?


Do you have enough for a 6 month emergency if you loose your job?


I may use half on the house which would make the payments go down but not the whole thing if I don't have a retirement plan or close to enough in retirement to live off until you pass away.
If you invest the funds in a growth mutual fund it will probably increase more then the cost of the mortgage. You would not have to pay taxes on it until it is withdrawn. You can also look into a Roth IRA which has a limit of $5.000 + $1,000 catchup each year. The good thing about the Roth is there will be no federal taxes ever. Thus, put the $6,000 into a Roth IRA and the rest in a mutual fund. Each year sell some of the mutual fund and put it in the Roth IRA. You will have to pay taxes on the increase from the mutual fund each year.





I had three houses that I was renting for 9 years. Don't do it. It is not only expensive (paying upkeep) but the renter could be a real pill.





The Roth IRA cannot be withdrawn, without a 10% penalty, until you are 59-1/2.





Good luck on your decision.

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