‘The world feels unpredictable’: I’m 56. My husband is 64. Our mortgage costs $17K a month. Do we pay it off?

Quentin Fottrell

Thu, February 19, 2026 at 12:30 AM GMT+9 6 min read

“We have a 15-year mortgage with an interest rate of 2.4%, which is our only debt.” (Photo subject is a model.) - Getty Images/iStockphoto

Dear Quentin,

My husband is turning 65 this year, and I am 56. This is the first marriage for both of us. We have three children — one is out of college, one is about to graduate, and one is a sophomore. College is fully paid for. We expect our children to work and support themselves after they leave college.

My husband currently has two years left on his contract with his employer. He earns approximately $3.5 million annually, which includes his year-end bonus. We purchased a larger home during the pandemic (January 2021). We wanted more space and also viewed it as a good investment.

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We have a 15-year mortgage with an interest rate of 2.4%, which is our only debt. We paid $3.1 million for the house and owe $1.3 million on the loan; it is located inside the Beltway in the greater D.C. area, in a sought-after neighborhood. We have made significant improvements to the home. It would sell quickly, it looks great, and we take excellent care of it.

We have $5.2 million in a professionally managed account. I have two IRAs valued at $493,048 (I have been a stay-at-home mom for more than 20 years.) This does not include my husband’s retirement account through work or his IRAs. I estimate those total approximately $1 million.

When my husband’s current job ends — he may remain in this role through 2028 — he plans to continue working, but will earn considerably less in his next position.

When should we pay off our mortgage? If my husband earns significantly less, we will not be able to cover the monthly mortgage payment, which is currently almost $17,000 per month. Should we pay it off now, or continue paying it while he is earning a higher salary and then reassess when he leaves his current job?

As mentioned, we have a low interest rate. Additionally, we do not know how long we will stay in this house — that is a big question mark for us. The world feels unpredictable these days, especially in Washington, D.C.

D.C. Wife

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For the moment, this 2.4% interest rate is golden. - MarketWatch illustration

Dear Wife,

You have a lot of changes ahead, mostly good.

Your children will be flying the coop, your husband will be taking on a presumably less pressured — if a slightly lesser paid — job, and together you will be preparing for your retirement years, assuming you have no intention of going back to work. What’s more, you’ve a lot of equity left in your home; it has definitely increased in value over the intervening years, and is likely worth closer to $3.5 million today, or more given the work you put into it.

Story Continues  

You have more than $6.25 million saved, so you could easily take a chunk of that to pay off the rest of your home. But what would be the best move financially, given your age and financial profile? Practically, it makes little sense to use your portfolio to pay this off. Your 2.4% rate is below inflation, your return on investments (a guesstimate of 7% after inflation and fees), and even bonds if you had them (3% to 4%).

For the moment, this 2.4% rate is golden. With inflation currently averaging at 2.7% annually, this mortgage is effectively free or negative in real terms. This is not just good debt, it’s excellent debt. To pay off this mortgage, unless you have a sizable Roth, you would have to take out a lot more than $1.3 million to pay it off, and you would lose the compounding interest on those funds. What’s more, it doesn’t hurt to keep “mad money” invested in case of emergencies.

I’m hung up on your $17,000-a-month mortgage payment. It’s partly the cheapskate middle-class advice columnist in me, and it’s partly due to where you are in your life. You obviously love this house and we all deserve to live in the home of our dreams, if we can afford it, but I’m also wondering whether you might consider — at some point, perhaps when your husband eases into retirement — downsizing for just the two of you.

Postretirement expenses

What will your household income be after your husband’s job changes, and what percentage of your income will that $17,000 a month make up? What about your other expenses? Remember, a bear market early in your husband’s retirement with a $17,000-a-month obligation would be tough. The biggest red/amber flag in your letter: “If my husband earns significantly less, we will not be able to cover the monthly mortgage payment.”

In the meantime, however, $17,000 a month, or $204,000 a year, is not lost money. You’re paying down a mortgage and building equity, and your house is also rising in value all the time. On a $6.2 million portfolio, your mortgage would be equivalent to an annual withdrawal rate of 3.3%. Mortgage interest will only be partially deductible on a jumbo mortgage, but you would pay long-term capital gains on that investment growth above and beyond the exemption levels.

Yes, the world is unpredictable, and no one wants to be left sitting on negative equity, especially with a jumbo mortgage payment — but your net worth gives you ample cushion to weather any down times, as long as we don’t hit another Great Recession-esque property crash. Most economists forecast modest price gains for real estate in 2026 (around 3%, but it depends on the neighborhood and the kind of house) with tight inventory still keeping prices elevated.

Looking ahead, you have a lot of questions and hurdles awaiting you, the same as anyone earning a fraction of your husband’s salary. When do you both start claiming Social Security? When will your husband initiate any Roth conversions? Are you both prepared for the tax implications of those required minimum distributions, which start at 73? And — last but not least — how will your mortgage impact your retirement withdrawals?

Reassess your living situation every six to 12 months.

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