Interesting responses. I own my house free and clear and have for several years and am not thinking of it as an income producer ever. I live alone, have no children, and my biggest expense is the money I spend going out to eat, aside from property taxes etc..

Going up ladders and house maintenance in general is only part of the issue. I find when I walk into my house and look around, that I get to thinking that I own way to much and that the house is really a storage shed as much as anything. I could easily cut my living space in half and be quite comfortable. Space for my bikes, my books a stereo and a TV, how much does one person need?

I think that part of it has to do with responsibility, something of which I am not a big fan. If someone would build some condos in this neighborhood, which won't happen, I could easily dump the house and move. I would hate, however, as Barefeet says, to give up the neighborhood.