HOME OWNERSHIP: AN EXPENSIVE AUTOMATIC SAVINGS PLAN? In the best-case scenario, owning your own residence works as an automatic savings plan. You find a home. You put the traditional 20 percent cash down. You get a fixed-rate fifteen- or thirty-year mortgage, which you faithfully pay month after month. Once you have paid off your mortgage, you own a big asset. You never once thought you were putting money in a savings account or investing it. But that’s exactly what you did.
