You don't have to, but there are many people out there who are not financially disciplined enough to be on a longer plan and pay anything more than the minimum. I don't think my original comment was focused enough and is mostly based on my own personal experiences. I live in a neighborhood about 30 minutes north of Portland that isn't too dissimilar from the one I or my wife grew up in. The difference, however, is that the parents here who have children are either older, have two graduate-level+ careers, and/or have family helping out with childcare. The couples that don't have children still have two white collar incomes. I grew up on a police officer's salary and my wife on a truck driver's salary. The average first time homeowner demographic is very different today.