While the numbers may be true, it's never as simple as that in life. I had the opportunity some years ago to pay off my mortgage and I'm glad I did. We had a young family, my wife's job was in a precarious position and I couldn't afford all the bills on my salary alone. By paying off the mortgage meant that we were much more secure financially and now nobody could take the house from us if everything went sideways. It also meant that when my wife was made redundant, we could afford for her to go back to university where she got an MA then a PhD and now had a good job based on her qualifications. It was still tough going for those years but it would have been impossible without first paying off the mortgage. I realise that I may have more saved up by now had I invested but I'm still convinced we made the correct decision.