Mortgage Calculators and Other Home Finance Tools

Mortgage calculators and other home-owning finance tools are all over the web. Highlighted below are some of the more useful and interesting mortgage calculators that will make your mortgage and financing options clearer.

Quick Mortgage Calculator

The Quick Mortgage Calculator helps you when you’re in the process of deciding whether or not to purchase a home. The first step in deciding on potential homes is looking at the math—how much do your home options cost, and how much can you afford in monthly mortgage payments? The Quick Mortgage Calculator allows you to enter the total loan amount along with an interest rate and loan term, and the calculator determines what your monthly payment will be for that loan. With that, you can determine if the calculated payments are within your comfort zone and budget.

Rent vs. Mortgage Payment Calculator

Another financial calculator that can help you decide if buying a home makes sense is the Rent vs. Mortgage Payment Calculator. This calculator illustrates which portion of your mortgage payment pays down your actual loan vs. the portion that pays for tax-deductible interest. Then you can compare those numbers to what you would pay in rent. This calculator visualizes which option gives you more value in your housing dollars—paying rent or making monthly mortgage payments?

Tax Deduction for Homeownership Calculator

TheTax Deductible Calculator projects how much your income tax deduction will be, based on the amount of interest that you’re paying annually on your mortgage.

Should I Pay for Discount Points? Calculator

For those who are further along in the home-buying process, check out the Should I Pay Discount Points? calculator—it will help you determine if buying down your mortgage interest rate is beneficial to your situation. It calculates how many months it will take you to recoup the cost of buying down the interest rate of your loan.

Additional Mortgage Payment Calculator

For people who currently own a home, take a look at the Additional Payment Calculator. It’s designed for those who want to pay their mortgage off quicker, by making a higher monthly payments. The additional payment portion goes directly towards paying the principal balance of the loan. For example, if you have a 30-year mortgage, and you pay $200 extra per month, you may be able to pay that mortgage off in 23 years.

How Much Will I Save by Refinancing My Loan? Calculator

Also for those who currently own a home, is the How Much Will I Save by Refinancing My Loan? calculator. This tool will compare the current mortgage terms of your loan to the current interest rates available if you refinance. By knowing the possible savings through refinancing, you can decide if the cost of refinancing is higher than the savings that would come with a lower interest rate. Many homeowners have been amazed by the amount of money that can be saved by lowering their interest rate just a bit. For example, reducing your interest rate by just half a percent on a 30-year, $200,000 mortgage will save you $21,000 over the life of the loan!

Regardless of what stage you find yourself in the homebuying or refinancing process, look at all of the calculators to make an informed decision about your next home purchase or refinance.