I tend to agree but
@DRCraig bear in mind you are speaking to people who have owned Alfas, so we aren't exactly the poster children for fiscal conservatism.
The only thing worse than instant gratification for those unprepared for it is delayed gratification for those who are.
We have these noble goals in life sometimes but you must also maximise your comfort and fun while you can. You want to pay your house off but you might find that your plans don't quite go that way anyway and its 2029 or 2030 and you've both given up things you love and are unable to replace them. The other bit is "what then" - what is the next 'responsible' thing to do? There is always something to gatekeep the fun.
Before you know it you're too old to have fun or there is a health crisis or three thrown your way. I myself have just had to deal with something like this where one week we were going to spend a very large amount of money and the very next week my wife was in for major surgery and literally everything changed dramatically. Between the general unpredictability in this world, health, war and age, the opportunity can be gone very quickly.
There are healthy ways to manage debt and a homeloan is a pretty normal debt to have especially if you're in your early 30s. If circumstances allow for it, don't delay pleasures that life can give you. This will be unpopular advice, but you can also liquidate a car far more quickly and 'inexpensively' than you can a property if you do end up unemployed or retrenched (or having a few bad years in business) as can be the case later in your 30s and 40s.
I can tell you first hand that nothing ever gets cheaper, more accessible or 'closer'. Your ability to take on risk (and appetite for it) dramatically declines when your retirement target is shorter than 2 decades. Most people seem to be in a holding pattern in terms of the type of things they can afford. 10 years ago I could buy a new M3 or a new-ish M5 or a 10 year old Ferrari. Right now, despite earnings being dramatically different, those are my same options (and I feel I am lucky that is still the case).
Very few investments will outpace the dramatic inflationary effects of living in SA. If you want to keep abreast of daily costs for retirement that's one thing. Chasing luxury and prestige items is another story: eg: entry level supercars have increased far beyond inflationary levels. Even M cars are beyond the reach of many unless they are renting them as is the current style LOL. You have to jump in sometime or be left behind.
There is also always something to chase when it comes to houses or some other need be it family expansion/downscaling/relocating: Guess what, even once that bond is paid up there will be something else (or a renovation or an addition etc).
I also feel like I did all the wrong things with properties, both in terms of what I bought and paying them off early in a stagnant market. I would have been far better off renting, keeping the liquidity or even buying the things I "should not have been buying" according to other people, that have far outperformed property or doing 'the right things' LOL. Even doing that I would still have been in the same place property wise.
Not financial advice though - speak to a proper financial advisor too. I sent someone to Kish recently but can't seem to tag him so not sure if he is still on here.
