By John P. Walsh

(This is a reprint of an article currently appearing in First Time HomeBuyer Magazine)

As president & CEO of the National Organization of American Homeowners - NOAH, one of my responsibilities is to examine the overall health of home ownership in the United States. I have been following a disturbing trend in home ownership over the last two decades. More homeowners are re-financning their home every six or seven years and less are paying off their mortgage. Our parents and grandparents saved their money and payed off their mortgage, Your home is your biggest asset if you're like the other 75 million homeowners.You need to own it, not the bank. 25 years ago, 52% of homeowners did NOT have a mortgage, today that figure is barely 30%.

NOAH has been watching an emerging industry over the past 18 months: mortgage acceleration. We have have examined about a dozen firms with divergent business models, price points and sales offers, but essentially, it's the same product; web based software that teaches the homeowner the idea of a 'sweep account,' and reverse compound interest. First you need to spend two hours or so to understand the concept and set up the software, like Excel. After that, you'll need about a 1/2 hour twice a month. The software will enable you to pay off a 30 year mortgage in eight to ten years. You don't alter your monthly budget, you only have to fulfill two requirements: you take in more money than you pay out and you'll spend the one hour a month.

You can easily save over $100,000 in mortgage interest by using this product, it even teaches you how you can use it to save money for your kids college tuition. At NOAH our philosophy states we are: "where smart homeownership begins." Our members, and you, want to own their home outright. You create wealth, stability, assure a comfortable retirement and most of all; you get out of the re-financing merry-go-round! If however you like to re-finance, you can pay down your mortgage, using this software and re-finance (with a lot more 'cash out') three times over the course of 30 years! It is the opinion of the National Organization of American Homeowners however, that you pay down your mortgage, then throw a mortgage burning party!

There are several companies currently offering different price points for essentially the same program. One charges a whopping $3,500 and another $495 and 49.95 a month. NOAH is about to endorse a program that charges a very affordable $695 (which you'll make up in interest saved in the first month of using the program) and is more tutorial than sales oriented. They also offer an excellent affiliate program for mortgage professionals, home based businesses, home builders and entrepreneurs. Contact NOAH for more information.

(John P. Walsh is Founder and Chairman of the National Organization of American Homeowners, based in Washington, DC has been in the housing industry for 20 years, he has been sought for comment and featured in press publications and is the author of numerous articles on housing and homeownership.You can contact him at 202-413-9418 or jpw@noahusa.net)