Most mortgage calculators give you principal and interest and call it done. That's roughly 70% of the actual monthly nut, and the missing 30% (property tax, insurance, HOA, PMI) is where the unpleasant surprises live. This one shows you all of it, plus what an extra principal payment actually saves.
In Mortgage mode, drop in home price, down payment, rate, and term. Toggle on the add-ons that apply: property tax, insurance, HOA, PMI (auto-on if down payment is below 20%), and any extra principal you'd like to throw at it. The breakdown bar shows where each dollar of your monthly payment actually goes. The extra-principal toggle shows how much you'd save in interest and how much faster you'd pay off the loan.
In Loan / Debt mode, the calculator collapses to a clean fixed-rate loan calc: auto, student, personal, business. Same amortization math, no homeownership add-ons.
Illustration only. Excludes closing costs, escrow shortages, points, and rate changes. PMI shown when down payment is below 20%. Actual figures vary by lender and locality. Not a lending offer.
Total monthly payment, not principal and interest. The "I can afford the mortgage" math people do in their heads usually ignores property tax (often 1 to 1.5% of home value annually), insurance, HOA if applicable, and PMI if down payment is under 20%. Combined, that's often 25 to 40% on top of the P&I figure. Always know your actual monthly nut before you sign.
Extra principal is the cheapest "investment" most homeowners overlook. Toggle the Extra Principal switch above: you'll see the math on your loan in real time. Here's the asymmetry worth knowing before you do: an extra $200/month shaves nearly 8 years off a $250K mortgage at 6.5%, but only ~3 years off a $1M one. Same $200. Smaller loans get faster payoff; bigger loans get bigger dollar savings. The return is your mortgage rate, certain and with no market risk. Compounding works in reverse on debt.
Term length is the lever most people don't consider. A 15-year mortgage at the same rate costs roughly 35 to 40% more per month but cuts total interest paid by more than half (at 6.5%: about 38% more per month, about 55% less interest). If cash flow allows, the math is decisive, but cash flow is the constraint that usually decides it.
PMI is real money. If down payment is under 20%, lenders typically add 0.3 to 1.5% of loan value as PMI annually. On a $500K loan that's $1,500 to $7,500 per year, until you've built 20% equity. Always factor this in when comparing "10% down vs. 20% down" math.
The real monthly number is the one the listing skipped. Look at all of it once, taxes, insurance, PMI, before you sign.
Before a house locks in your next decade, see how it fits the life you want.
Principal and interest, plus property tax, homeowners insurance, HOA fees if any, and PMI if you put down less than 20%. The page notes principal and interest is roughly 70% of the real monthly cost, and the rest is where surprises live. This calculator shows each piece in a breakdown bar.
It depends on loan size. In the page's example at 6.5%, an extra $200 a month cuts nearly 8 years off a $250K mortgage but only about 3 years off a $1M one. Smaller loans pay off faster; bigger loans save more dollars. The return on each extra dollar is your mortgage rate.
When the down payment is under 20%, lenders typically add PMI of 0.3% to 1.5% of the loan per year. On a $500K loan that is $1,500 to $7,500 a year, until you build 20% equity. This calculator turns PMI on automatically below 20% down, which matters when comparing 10% down with 20% down.
Yes. Loan / Debt mode turns it into a plain fixed-rate loan calculator for auto, student, personal or business loans, using the same amortization math without the homeownership add-ons. It excludes closing costs, points and rate changes, and actual figures vary by lender.
For that, check out the Rent vs. Buy calculator, or book a call to talk through the decision in your specific situation.
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