Welcome to 2015!

And with it a chance to make one New Year’s resolution that doesn’t involve a diet or a gym and should be easy to keep.

Make a resolution about your mortgage.

If you commit to putting a few extra dollars toward paying down your mortgage sooner.

It doesn’t sound exciting, does it?

But I guarantee you’ll feel satisfied once you make that first step and you’ll help your bottom line by doing at least one of the three following mortgage repayment steps this year:

1. Increase your payments, even if it’s only a little increase.

Are you getting a pay raise this year? Consider putting $10 or $20 of that raise towards your mortgage by increasing your payments. If one of your other resolutions involves eating out less, redirect some of your savings to a mortgage payment boost. Most lenders will allow you to increase your payments by 15 or 20 per cent so if your cashflow can handle it make a larger payment increase.

2. Increase your payment frequency to accelerated bi-weekly payments.

If you get paid bi-weekly, you should really be making accelerated bi-weekly payments already. It’s often harder for people who are paid monthly or semi-monthly to make accelerated payments but the reality is this is the best payment frequency for most people because you end up shaving at least a couple of years off your mortgage amortization. That’s because people who make accelerated bi-weekly payments make 26 payments per year versus 24 payments for semi-monthly or 12 for monthly.

3. Make a lump sum payment, even if it’s only a few hundred or thousand dollars.

Do you earn a bonus at work? Do you get a tax refund? Take at least half of it and put it on your mortgage. Most lenders allow for a lump sum payment on any regular payment date, as long as it’s at least $100.

Good luck with your mortgage repayment resolution and your other New Year’s resolutions.