Owning a House with No Mortgage - Good Idea?

State Farm is happy to automatically deduct our insurance payments from our checking account on a monthly basis. As for taxes, the County sends us a bill every six months. Write a check and mail it in.

The big advantage is you don't have to deal with the banks. Endless reams of paperwork to apply and qualify for the loan, plus fees upon fees upon fees.

And as for myself, I absolutely detest being in debt.

You do have a good point about leaving some cash as a safety net. Most Pundits recommend between 6 to 18 months of salary. If you buy your home outright, this would slide your safety net towards the lean side. Then, instead of making monthly mortgage payments to the bank, pay yourself instead, and build the safety net back up again.

I'll take owning it outright any day. I own my own home and not having to pay a mortgage every month is awesome. I pay my insurance and my tax once a year.
I also hate being in dept and pay cash for my cars as well.

Re: Owning a House with No Mortgage - Good Idea?
As far as your first question, it would depend as to whether you could invest the cash elsewhere at a higher rate of return. Since mortgage rates are still generally low and mortgage interest is deductible, if you had an alternative investment for the cash, you could earn a higher return in the longer run.

IMO, if you consider the home "inexpensive" you are better off dispensing with the mortgage hassles, and buy the house outright. If the home were more pricey, you might just want to get a mortgage and invest the rest of the money. Basically, you just need to do the math, and see which way is more favorable to you.

Another thing. If you itemize your income tax, you can take off your mortgage interest as a deduction. Again, do the math.