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By now many of you have heard of a Boston man who paid off his final mortgage payment by bringing to bank a box of pennies weighing 800 pounds and worth a grand total of $620. Turning in the very last mortgage check is one of those eventful moments in life. Congratulations are well deserved, though it is unclear if melting the pennies and selling the copper would have yielded more than $620.
This story is a terrific reminder that there is indeed an end zone on mortgages. On a 30-year fixed rate mortgage, the payment will be set exactly the same for all 30 years. Your salary, hopefully, rises over time, but not your monthly mortgage payment. So saving pennies here and there will add up. Fixed mortgage payments are the best inflation-fighting instrument out there.
By contrast, forget about saving pennies to buy that pork chop. It will be an unending chase. Just when you thought you had saved enough pennies, the butcher raises the price. I mention pork because this is one product that will get a notable jump in prices over the next year for certain. Supply and demand is at work. Regarding supply, it is becoming more costly to buy feed for the hogs. Regarding demand, Germany and China, the two biggest pork-consuming countries, are experiencing a decent economic growth. The rising income in these countries will naturally mean more of their citizens will demand pork.
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