Mortgage Calculator
Estimates the monthly cost of a home loan, including the parts that turn a manageable payment into an unmanageable one.
The Mortgage calculator looks up US property tax by zip code, so it only appears for accounts in the United States.
Inputs
Home
Home Amount: the purchase price.
Down: what you're putting down, as an amount, or as a percentage in the or box beside it. Fill in either one and the other follows. Type a home amount first and a 20% down payment is filled in for you, which you can change.
Country: fixed to the United States.
Zip Code: required. Property tax is looked up from it. Property tax varies enormously by area, and it's often the difference between a payment you're comfortable with and one you aren't.
Loan
Loan type: the term, starting at a 30-year mortgage. A VA loan carries a note: it has no monthly mortgage insurance, but the one-time funding fee isn't included.
Interest Rate: your quoted rate. Leave it blank and today's typical rate is used and filled into the field. The result shows the date of that rate.
Monthly extras
PMI, Insurance, HOA, and Utilities, each a monthly amount. Leave blank anything that doesn't apply.
Fill in the extras
They're optional, and they're the reason people's real payment comes in higher than expected.
A principal-and-interest figure is not what you pay. Add property tax, mortgage insurance, and home insurance and the real number is routinely 20–30% above it. Buyers who budget against the principal-and-interest figure discover this at closing.
PMI is typically required below a 20% down payment. Enter it.
What you get
Estimated total monthly payment, with the month the loan is paid off (for loan types with a stated term). Beneath it are Loan (the amount borrowed), Rate, and Property tax.
The breakdown shows Principal & interest, Property tax, Optional · insurance, HOA, utilities, and Total.
A second breakdown shows the lifetime cost: Interest over the term, and Principal and interest, in total. Tax, insurance, and the extras aren't in those two figures, since they aren't borrowed.
Add To Budget
Add To Budget puts the total monthly payment, tax and extras included, into your Builder's housing section as a monthly payment named Mortgage. You'll see Mortgage payment added to budget. with a Go To Budget shortcut.
What to do with the result
Compare down payments. Run it at several down payment levels. Two things move at once: the payment falls, and past 20% you can drop PMI entirely. That second effect is often larger than people expect and can justify waiting a few months to save more.
Compare terms. Switch the loan type. A shorter term costs more monthly and dramatically less overall. Look at Interest over the term, not just the payment.
Compare locations. Same house price, different zip code, different property tax. Sometimes that's a substantial difference in monthly cost.
Then take it to your budget
The payment on its own tells you whether you can technically afford it. Your budget tells you what it costs you.
Tap Add To Budget and rebuild. You'll see what the mortgage does to your debt-free date and your savings trajectory. That's the question that actually matters, and the one a standalone mortgage calculator can't answer. See Housing.
Do this before you make an offer, not after.
What it doesn't include
Homeownership costs more than the mortgage. Not included here:
- ›Closing costs
- ›Maintenance and repairs
- ›A VA loan's funding fee
Add the recurring costs to Expenses when you build your budget. A common rule of thumb sets aside 1–2% of the home's value annually for maintenance.
If you already have a mortgage
This calculator prices a new loan. To model paying down an existing one faster, use Early Mortgage Payoff.
If you're renting
Rent Affordability is the equivalent tool.