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ToolBoxGenie

Mortgage Calculator

Calculators · Added 15 August 2026

Work out what a house actually costs each month, not just what the loan costs. Principal and interest is usually only two thirds of the payment — property tax, insurance, HOA dues and mortgage insurance make up the rest, and this calculator includes all of them, along with the month PMI stops being charged.

%
Down payment is a
%

Annual nominal rate

years

Leave blank if it is not escrowed with your payment

%

Of the original loan. Only charged above 80% LTV.

How to use the mortgage calculator

  1. 1Enter the home price and your down payment, as a percentage or a fixed amount.
  2. 2Add the interest rate and the loan term in years.
  3. 3Enter annual property tax and home insurance — both are usually collected monthly with your payment.
  4. 4Add monthly HOA dues and your PMI rate if your down payment is below 20%.
  5. 5Read the total monthly payment and, where PMI applies, what the payment falls to once it ends.

Examples

20% down, no PMI

Input
$400,000 home · 20% down · 6.5% · 30 years · $4,800 tax · $1,800 insurance
Result
$2,622.62 per month · $2,022.62 of it principal and interest

At 20% down there is no mortgage insurance, which is the main reason that threshold matters.

10% down, with PMI

Input
$400,000 home · 10% down · 6.5% · 30 years · 0.6% PMI
Result
$2,275.44 principal and interest, plus $180 a month PMI

The PMI stops once the balance reaches 80% of the original price — the calculator works out which month that is.

Total cost over the term

Input
$320,000 borrowed at 6.5% over 30 years
Result
$408,143 of interest — more than the amount borrowed

Interest exceeding principal is normal on a long mortgage at this rate.

About the mortgage calculator

The loan is not the payment

A mortgage calculator that asks only for the loan amount, rate and term answers a narrower question than most buyers are actually asking. It tells you the principal and interest, which on a typical American purchase is somewhere between 60% and 75% of what leaves your account each month.

The rest is property tax, which varies enormously by jurisdiction and is reassessed periodically; homeowner's insurance, which has risen sharply in several regions; HOA or condominium dues where they apply; and mortgage insurance if the down payment was under a fifth. Any of these can be several hundred a month, and the last three are frequently omitted from the figure a buyer has in mind.

This matters most at the affordability margin. A buyer who has budgeted against a principal-and-interest figure and then meets the full escrowed payment is looking at a number a third larger than expected, at the point where the purchase is already well advanced.

The 20% threshold and what it really buys

Twenty percent down is treated as a rule, and it is worth understanding what it actually is: the point at which a conventional lender stops requiring mortgage insurance. PMI protects the lender, not the borrower, against default on a high loan-to-value mortgage. It typically costs between 0.3% and 1.5% of the loan a year, which on a $360,000 loan is between $90 and $450 a month for no benefit to you.

That does not automatically make waiting to reach 20% the right choice. Against the cost of PMI you have to weigh rent paid in the meantime, any movement in house prices and rates while you save, and the opportunity cost of a much larger deposit. In a rising market, buying earlier with PMI has often worked out better; in a flat or falling one, rarely.

What is unambiguous is that PMI should not be forgotten about once it starts. It does not always come off automatically at the moment you become eligible — on conventional loans you generally have to request cancellation at 80%, and automatic termination only bites at 78%. Borrowers who never ask can pay it for years longer than necessary, which is the practical reason this calculator reports the month it becomes cancellable.

What this calculator assumes

It assumes a fixed interest rate for the entire term. An adjustable-rate mortgage will not behave like this after its initial period, and the payment can move substantially. It assumes your tax and insurance figures are accurate and constant, which they will not be — property tax is reassessed and insurance premiums have been rising faster than general inflation in many markets.

It assumes payments are made monthly, on schedule, with no overpayments. Making extra principal payments shortens the term and cuts total interest considerably; the loan prepayment calculator on this site models that specifically.

It also assumes the property's value does not change, which matters only for the PMI calculation. In practice, a rising valuation can let you cancel mortgage insurance sooner via a new appraisal, and a falling one can delay it. Treat the PMI month as an estimate based on scheduled amortisation alone, and confirm anything that turns on it with your lender.

Frequently asked questions

What does PITI mean?
Principal, Interest, Taxes and Insurance — the four components lenders typically collect as one monthly payment. Principal and interest repay the loan; taxes and insurance are collected into an escrow account from which the lender pays the bills when they fall due. HOA dues and mortgage insurance are often added on top, which is why this calculator asks for all six figures rather than just the loan.
When does PMI stop being charged?
On a conventional US loan, private mortgage insurance is generally cancellable once the balance reaches 80% of the original value, and lenders must terminate it automatically at 78% if payments are current. This calculator works out the 80% point by amortising the loan month by month, assuming no extra payments and no change in the property's value. Rules differ by loan type — FHA mortgage insurance in particular can last the life of the loan — so confirm the terms with your lender rather than relying on this figure.
Why is so much of the early payment interest?
Because interest is charged on the outstanding balance, which is at its largest at the start. On a 30-year loan at 6.5%, roughly three quarters of the first payment goes to interest and only a quarter to principal. The proportion shifts gradually, crossing over around two thirds of the way through the term. This is also why overpaying early has a disproportionate effect — every extra pound of principal removes all the future interest that pound would have generated.
How much house can I afford?
Lenders commonly look at two ratios: housing costs against gross income, and total debt payments against gross income, with typical guidelines around 28% and 36% respectively. Those are underwriting rules of thumb rather than a judgement about your circumstances, and they take no account of childcare, commuting, existing savings or job security. The loan eligibility calculator on this site works from the lender's side; the honest personal answer usually comes out lower.
Does this include closing costs?
No. Closing costs — origination fees, appraisal, title insurance, recording fees, prepaid escrow — typically add 2% to 5% of the purchase price and are paid up front rather than monthly, so they sit outside a monthly payment calculation. Budget for them separately; they are a substantial cash requirement on top of the down payment.

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