Mortgage Calculator

Mortgage payments with taxes and insurance

A monthly mortgage payment usually has more parts than the loan itself:

If you leave the optional fields blank, the result is principal and interest only. Lenders often quote that figure, but it can be well below what you actually pay each month. For a fuller look at budgeting around these costs, see the guide to how much house you can afford.

How to use the mortgage calculator

1. Enter the home price and the down payment as a percentage of the price. The calculator shows the dollar amount and the resulting loan amount. To convert a dollar down payment to a percentage, the percentage calculator can help.
2. Enter the interest rate and choose the loan term.
3. Add yearly property tax and homeowners insurance, and monthly HOA fees, if they apply. A listing, a tax assessor’s website or an insurance quote can give you realistic figures.
4. Review the estimated monthly total and the breakdown. The amortization table shows principal paid, interest paid and the remaining balance for each year.

Monthly payment per $100,000 borrowed

Principal and interest only, fixed rate, calculated the same way as the calculator. Total interest is over the full term. To scale a figure to your loan, divide the loan amount by 100,000 and multiply: a $320,000 loan at 6.5% for 30 years is 3.2 × $632.07, or about $2,022.62 a month.

To scale the table, multiply by the loan amount in hundreds of thousands. A $320,000 loan at 6.5% over 30 years is 3.2 × $632.07 ≈ $2,022.62 a month. Each half-point of rate adds roughly $29 to $35 a month per $100,000 on a 30-year loan in this range.

Down payment and loan amount

The loan amount is the home price minus the down payment. A larger down payment reduces the loan, which lowers both the monthly principal and interest and the total interest paid. On a $400,000 home at 6.5% over 30 years:

On a conventional loan, putting less than 20% down usually means paying private mortgage insurance until you build enough equity. This mortgage calculator does not add PMI, so the rows with less than 20% down understate the real monthly cost. Closing costs, which are paid up front, are also not included.

When PMI can end

Under the federal rules the CFPB describes, borrowers can request PMI cancellation once the balance is scheduled to fall to 80% of the home’s original value, and the servicer must end it automatically at 78%, provided payments are current. With 10% down on a $400,000 home at 6.5%, the scheduled balance reaches $320,000 (80%) after 95 payments, or about 7 years 11 months, and $312,000 (78%) after 109 payments. Extra principal payments reach those points sooner.

How to calculate a mortgage payment by hand

Take a $250,000 loan at 6% for 30 years.

1. Monthly rate: r = 0.06 ÷ 12 = 0.005.
2. Number of payments: n = 30 × 12 = 360.
3. Growth factor: 1.005^360 ≈ 6.022575.
4. Payment: M = 250,000 × 0.005 × 6.022575 ÷ (6.022575 − 1) ≈ $1,498.88.
5. First month: interest is $250,000 × 0.005 = $1,250.00, so only $248.88 reduces the balance.

Over 360 payments, total interest comes to $289,595.47, more than the amount borrowed.

Reading the mortgage amortization schedule

On a fixed-rate mortgage, the principal and interest payment stays the same, but its split changes every month. Early on, most of each payment is interest, because interest is charged on a large balance. As the balance falls, more of each payment goes toward principal. On a 30-year loan at 6%, the principal portion does not overtake the interest portion until about 18½ years in. At 6.5% it happens after about 19 years 5 months, and at 7% after about 20 years 2 months.

Remaining balance on a $320,000, 30-year loan at 6.5%:

Halfway through the term, about 73% of the original balance is still owed. The guide to how loan amortization works explains why.

Real-life scenarios

15 years vs. 30 years

A $320,000 loan at 6.5% costs $2,022.62 a month over 30 years and $2,787.54 over 15, about $765 more each month. The 15-year loan saves $226,384.52 in interest. Lenders often offer shorter terms at a lower rate; at 5.875% the 15-year payment falls to $2,678.78 and total interest to $162,180.25. The trade-off is a higher required payment that leaves less room in a monthly budget.

Extra payments toward principal

Adding a fixed amount to each payment on the same $320,000 loan at 6.5%:

These figures assume each extra dollar reduces principal right away. Some loans carry a prepayment penalty, usually for paying off the whole loan within the first few years, so the loan documents are worth checking. The calculator itself does not model extra payments.

Refinancing

Refinancing replaces the current loan with a new one. A lower rate reduces the payment, but restarting a 30-year clock on a loan that already has years of payments behind it can raise the total interest paid over both loans. Closing costs on the new loan also need to be recovered through the monthly saving before the refinance comes out ahead. Running the remaining balance through this calculator or the loan calculator at the new rate and term shows the new payment and interest.

Interest rate vs. APR

A mortgage’s interest rate sets the monthly payment. The APR is a broader measure that adds points, broker fees and certain other charges, so it is typically higher. Enter the interest rate here to estimate the payment, and compare APRs when weighing offers from different lenders. The guide to APR vs. APY covers how the two annual rates are defined.

What moves the payment most

• Loan amount. Payment scales directly with it, so price and down payment matter first.
• Rate. Each half-point changes a 30-year payment by roughly 5% to 6% in the 4%–8% range.
• Term. Shorter terms raise the payment but cut total interest sharply.
• Taxes, insurance and HOA dues. These can add several hundred dollars a month and tend to rise over time.

Common mistakes

• Budgeting on principal and interest alone. Taxes, insurance, PMI and HOA dues are part of the monthly cost.
• Entering the APR as the rate. It overstates the payment slightly.
• Assuming taxes and insurance stay fixed. Escrow payments are recalculated as those bills change.
• Comparing loans by payment only. A longer term or points paid up front can make a lower payment more expensive overall.

Glossary

• PITI. Principal, interest, taxes and insurance, the core of a monthly mortgage payment.
• Escrow. An account the servicer uses to collect and pay property tax and insurance.
• PMI. Private mortgage insurance, which protects the lender on many conventional loans with less than 20% down.
• Loan-to-value (LTV). The loan balance as a percentage of the home’s value.
• Points. Fees paid at closing, often in exchange for a lower rate; one point is 1% of the loan amount.
• Amortization. The schedule by which each payment is split between interest and principal.