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[quote]Median wealth for those approaching retirement, which includes the value of equity in their home, is roughly $170,000. This means that the median older household can use every penny they have to completely pay off their mortgage. Then they would have nothing left to support themselves in retirement except their Social Security.[/quote] According to the link, "median wealth" means that if the median household sold its home and satisfied the mortgage(s) with the proceeds of the sale it would have $170,000 in cash plus its future anticipated government benefits. It does not mean that they have a $170,000 mortgage and $170,000 in the bank. I'm not a financial planner, but the question is whether that $170,000 is enough. This is not "nothing," but it's almost certainly less than what they had in 2007. - LSTB