Mortgage Killer Accelerator

34 sequences

Strategies stacked in an order that repeats. The amount paid from income stays the same; each step adds to principal. Click any step for its full detail.

Asset-rich cycle

  1. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)
  2. 7. Mutual Pay and Borrow Company policy loan from account value (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  3. 10. Securities-backed line of credit (higher net worth) (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  4. 8. Sell a share of the home's future value (home equity investment) (Depends on markets or variable rates)

Move an asset into principal and recast. Only borrow against an asset when its cost and risk are clearly lower than the mortgage's.

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For: Higher net worth, with assets, Higher earners

Most predictable stack (no markets, no tenants)

  1. 5. Stop over-withholding and send it to principal (Most predictable)
  2. 6. Debt rollover: redirect every payment that ends (Most predictable)
  3. 1. Refinance lower, keep paying the old payment (Most predictable)
  4. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)
  5. 17. Family gifts straight to principal (Most predictable)

Every step is fixed arithmetic once it is in place. This is the closest thing to a sure payoff date: still not guaranteed, because income, rates offered and family gifts can change.

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For: Average household, Married couples, Newlyweds, Single, No high school diploma, No college degree, Higher earners

Cost-cutter stack (no new debt)

  1. 21. Drop mortgage insurance and send that amount to principal (Most predictable)
  2. 22. Lower the escrow: appeal the property tax, claim exemptions, use the surplus refund (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 23. Re-shop homeowners insurance and send the savings to principal (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 5. Stop over-withholding and send it to principal (Most predictable)
  5. 6. Debt rollover: redirect every payment that ends (Most predictable)

Every dollar comes from a bill that got smaller. The total you pay each month stays the same, and the difference lands on principal.

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For: Average household, Married couples, Single, Newlyweds, No high school diploma, No college degree, Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over)

Home side-gig stack

  1. 29. Rent the home by the day for photo shoots, filming and small events (Depends on people or program rules)
  2. 30. Rent out the driveway, garage, shed or attic for parking and storage (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 3. House hack: rent a room, a unit or an ADU (Depends on people or program rules)

Booking days, parking or storage space, and a room or unit each add a little. Every net dollar goes to principal; the total from income stays the same.

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For: Married couples, Single, Business owners, Average household, Newlyweds

Found-money sweep

  1. 32. Find money already owed to you: unclaimed property and old savings bonds (Depends on people or program rules)
  2. 24. Reimburse yourself from your HSA for old medical receipts (Most predictable)
  3. 22. Lower the escrow: appeal the property tax, claim exemptions, use the surplus refund (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 5. Stop over-withholding and send it to principal (Most predictable)

Money that is already yours: unclaimed property, old medical receipts, escrow surplus and over-withheld tax.

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For: Average household, Single, Married couples, No high school diploma, No college degree, College students, Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over), Newlyweds

Landowner stack

  1. 31. Put the land to work: hunting lease, timber sale, billboard or cell-site lease (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  2. 36. Landowners: a genuine conservation easement on land you keep (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

Lease income and the tax saved by a genuine easement go to principal each year; a large timber sale can be a lump sum followed by a recast.

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For: Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over), Higher net worth, with assets, Business owners, Married couples

Stay-put stack for 62 and over

  1. 35. Home sharing through a nonprofit matching program (Depends on people or program rules)
  2. 34. 62 and over: postpone the property tax and pay down the mortgage instead (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 33. Cut the utility bills with free weatherization and rebates (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 11. Right-size: sell, keep the tax-free gain, buy smaller (Depends on markets or variable rates)

Lower the bills and add rent while staying in the home; right-sizing is the last step, not the first.

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For: Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over)

Veteran stack

  1. 28. Veterans: a VA streamline refinance (IRRRL) at the same payment (Most predictable)
  2. 22. Lower the escrow: appeal the property tax, claim exemptions, use the surplus refund (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 23. Re-shop homeowners insurance and send the savings to principal (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 5. Stop over-withholding and send it to principal (Most predictable)

A lower rate at the same payment, then a lower escrow: many states give veterans a property tax exemption to file.

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For: Average household, Married couples, Single, Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over), No high school diploma, No college degree, Newlyweds

First-time buyer stack

  1. 26. First-time buyers: a Mortgage Credit Certificate (Most predictable)
  2. 19. Buyers: have the seller pay down the rate (Most predictable)
  3. 17. Family gifts straight to principal (Most predictable)
  4. 21. Drop mortgage insurance and send that amount to principal (Most predictable)

Set it up at purchase: the credit certificate and a bought-down rate must happen at closing; then yearly gifts and dropping mortgage insurance at 80%.

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For: Newlyweds, Single, College students, No high school diploma, No college degree, Average household

Bills-first stack (lowest income)

  1. 33. Cut the utility bills with free weatherization and rebates (Depends on people or program rules)
  2. 32. Find money already owed to you: unclaimed property and old savings bonds (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 6. Debt rollover: redirect every payment that ends (Most predictable)
  4. 5. Stop over-withholding and send it to principal (Most predictable)

No new loans and nothing to buy. Free weatherization, money already owed to you, and payments that end.

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For: No high school diploma, No college degree, Single, Average household, College students

Business owner's home stack

  1. 4. Business owners: rent your home to your business for up to 14 days (Depends on people or program rules)
  2. 29. Rent the home by the day for photo shoots, filming and small events (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 5. Stop over-withholding and send it to principal (Most predictable)
  4. 18. First-lien HELOC with a sweep account (an all-in-one loan) (Depends on markets or variable rates)

Meetings in the home under the 14-day rule, day bookings, the right tax payments, and a sweep line for uneven income. Keep records for every day rented.

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For: Business owners, Higher earners

Military family stack

  1. 39. Active duty: the 6% SCRA cap on a pre-service mortgage, at the old payment (Most predictable)
  2. 40. Kill the costlier debts first, then roll everything into the mortgage (Most predictable)
  3. 28. Veterans: a VA streamline refinance (IRRRL) at the same payment (Most predictable)
  4. 22. Lower the escrow: appeal the property tax, claim exemptions, use the surplus refund (Depends on people or program rules)

While on active duty, the 6% cap at the old payment; clear costlier debts; after service, a streamline refinance before the cap ends.

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For: Average household, Married couples, Single, Newlyweds, No high school diploma, No college degree, College students

Estate and giving stack

  1. 41. Inherited assets: sell after the basis steps up, pay principal (Most predictable)
  2. 42. 70½ and over: give from the IRA directly and send the tax saved to principal (Most predictable)
  3. 43. 65 and over: sell a policy you no longer need instead of surrendering it (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  4. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

Turn assets that no longer fit into principal with as little tax as the rules allow, then recast to lower the payment.

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For: Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over), Higher net worth, with assets, Married couples

Income from the home stack

  1. 44. Run a licensed family child care home (Depends on people or program rules)
  2. 38. Paid family caregiving at home through a Medicaid program (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 37. Rent the whole home for a big local event week (Depends on people or program rules)

Work the home already supports: child care, paid care for a relative who lives with you, and one big event week a year.

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For: Married couples, Newlyweds, Single, No high school diploma, No college degree, Average household, Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over)

Tax refund harvest

  1. 46. Claim every tax credit you qualify for and send the refund to principal (Most predictable)
  2. 47. Amend the last three years of returns for missed deductions and credits (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 45. Run childcare and commuting through pre-tax workplace benefits (Most predictable)
  4. 5. Stop over-withholding and send it to principal (Most predictable)

Claim what you are owed this year and the last three, then stop overpaying going forward. Every refund goes to principal.

Try this sequence in the calculator

For: Average household, Married couples, Single, Newlyweds, No high school diploma, No college degree, Higher earners

Bill-cutting stack for 65 and over

  1. 53. 65 and over with limited income: let a Medicare Savings Program pay the premiums (Most predictable)
  2. 54. Energy bill help through LIHEAP (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 55. Phone or internet discount through Lifeline (Most predictable)
  4. 60. Claim your state's property tax credit or circuit breaker (Most predictable)
  5. 34. 62 and over: postpone the property tax and pay down the mortgage instead (Depends on people or program rules)

Programs built for limited incomes, applied for together. The bills that shrink become principal payments.

Try this sequence in the calculator

For: Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over)

Sharing-economy stack

  1. 48. Rent out a car, trailer, tools or gear you rarely use (Depends on people or program rules)
  2. 49. Pet sitting and boarding from home (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 50. Sell baked goods or preserves from your kitchen under your state's cottage food law (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 30. Rent out the driveway, garage, shed or attic for parking and storage (Depends on people or program rules)

Small, steady side income from things and skills you already have. Track the net, pay the tax, send the rest to principal.

Try this sequence in the calculator

For: Average household, Single, Married couples, Newlyweds, College students, No high school diploma, No college degree

Sell what you don't use

  1. 58. Sell what sits unused: gold jewelry, collectibles, a boat or a second vehicle (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  2. 59. Sell a timeshare or vacation property that costs more than it gives (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  3. 51. Split off and sell extra land, with the lender's partial release (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  4. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

Turn idle things into principal, end their carrying costs, then recast to lower the payment.

Try this sequence in the calculator

For: Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over), Married couples, Higher net worth, with assets, Average household, Higher earners

Self-employed tax stack

  1. 62. Self-employed: take the home office deduction and send the tax saved to principal (Most predictable)
  2. 63. Business owners: pay your children for real work (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 4. Business owners: rent your home to your business for up to 14 days (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 5. Stop over-withholding and send it to principal (Most predictable)

Legal deductions for the business use of the home and family work. Keep records for every one.

Try this sequence in the calculator

For: Business owners, Higher earners

Servicer check-up

  1. 66. Audit the servicer: make sure every extra dollar hit principal (Most predictable)
  2. 21. Drop mortgage insurance and send that amount to principal (Most predictable)
  3. 22. Lower the escrow: appeal the property tax, claim exemptions, use the surplus refund (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 67. Move idle savings above the emergency fund to principal (Most predictable)

Make sure the servicer credits every extra dollar, drop mortgage insurance on time, fix the escrow, then put idle savings to work.

Try this sequence in the calculator

For: Average household, Married couples, Single, Newlyweds, Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over), No high school diploma, No college degree, Higher earners

Family bank cycle

  1. 17. Family gifts straight to principal (Most predictable)
  2. 15. Family bank: a parent's loan at the IRS minimum rate (Most predictable)
  3. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

Annual gifts to principal, a recorded family note at the IRS rate for a lump sum, then a recast. The equity relay is left out of this cycle on purpose because it moves the debt rather than lowering it.

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For: Newlyweds, Married couples, College students, Single, No high school diploma, No college degree, Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over)

Five-year sprint: move out and rent it

  1. 69. Rent the whole house out and live somewhere free or cheaper (Depends on people or program rules)
  2. 67. Move idle savings above the emergency fund to principal (Most predictable)
  3. 6. Debt rollover: redirect every payment that ends (Most predictable)
  4. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

The whole rent goes to principal for up to three years, idle savings go in, and each recast lowers the required payment. Move back in time to keep the home-sale exclusion.

Try this sequence in the calculator

For: Married couples, Newlyweds, Single, College students, No high school diploma, No college degree, Average household

Five-year sprint: sell what is not the home

  1. 73. Sell a rental property and pay off the home (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  2. 75. Sell vested employer shares you already own (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  3. 58. Sell what sits unused: gold jewelry, collectibles, a boat or a second vehicle (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  4. 59. Sell a timeshare or vacation property that costs more than it gives (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  5. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

Large one-time sales carry most of a five-year payoff. Pay the tax first, send the rest to principal, then recast.

Try this sequence in the calculator

For: Higher net worth, with assets, Business owners, Married couples, Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over), Higher earners

Five-year sprint: landowner

  1. 85. Lease acreage for a solar or wind project (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  2. 106. Lease or sell mineral rights you own (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  3. 87. Negotiate fair pay when a pipeline or power line crosses your land (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 51. Split off and sell extra land, with the lender's partial release (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  5. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

Land can pay three ways: a lease each year, a one-time bonus or easement payment, and the sale of a lot you do not need.

Try this sequence in the calculator

For: Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over), Married couples, Higher net worth, with assets

Five-year sprint: family help

  1. 80. A parent's or grandparent's large gift, using their lifetime exemption (Depends on people or program rules)
  2. 17. Family gifts straight to principal (Most predictable)
  3. 61. Merge households: a parent sells, moves in and shares the costs (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

A large gift under the giver's lifetime exemption, then yearly gifts and shared costs. Fair treatment of siblings in writing.

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For: Newlyweds, Married couples, Single, College students, No high school diploma, No college degree, Average household

Five-year sprint: business owner

  1. 74. Sell all or part of a business (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  2. 92. Owners of an S or C corporation: get reimbursed tax-free for home office and mileage (Most predictable)
  3. 62. Self-employed: take the home office deduction and send the tax saved to principal (Most predictable)
  4. 4. Business owners: rent your home to your business for up to 14 days (Depends on people or program rules)
  5. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

A partial sale for the lump sum, then every legal tax saving from the home and the business sent to principal.

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For: Business owners

Five-year sprint: 73 and over

  1. 81. 73 and over: send required distributions you don't need to principal (Most predictable)
  2. 82. Use an annuity's yearly free-withdrawal amount (Most predictable)
  3. 42. 70½ and over: give from the IRA directly and send the tax saved to principal (Most predictable)
  4. 76. Surrender a policy you no longer need, for its surrender value (Most predictable)
  5. 2. Lump sum from idle assets, then recast (Most predictable)

Money that must come out anyway, a yearly free withdrawal, the tax saved by giving directly, and a policy no longer needed.

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For: Grandmas and grandpas (62 and over)

Student loans gone, then the house

  1. 93. Let your employer pay student loans tax-free, then roll that payment (Most predictable)
  2. 94. Public service loan forgiveness, then roll the payment (Depends on people or program rules)
  3. 95. Teacher forgiveness or disability discharge for student loans (Depends on people or program rules)
  4. 6. Debt rollover: redirect every payment that ends (Most predictable)

Every student loan payment that ends becomes a principal payment the next month.

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For: Single, Married couples, Newlyweds, Average household, College students

Two live-in flips, then no mortgage

  1. 72. Live-in improve and sell, every two years, tax-free gain each time (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  2. 71. Sell in a high-cost area and buy for cash somewhere less expensive (Depends on markets or variable rates)
  3. 11. Right-size: sell, keep the tax-free gain, buy smaller (Depends on markets or variable rates)

Two sales two years apart, each gain excluded up to the limit, the last purchase made for cash or close to it.

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For: Married couples, Newlyweds, Single, Business owners, No college degree, No high school diploma

Velocity banking, measured

With the same monthly surplus, drawing a home equity line onto the mortgage only helps if the line costs less than the mortgage. The surplus does the work, not the line. Lines are usually variable and can rise.

Run the velocity check on your own numbers