Online Mortgage Repayment Calculator

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Understanding how your mortgage works is the key to getting it at the best available price. You know that what you will be paying will depend on the size of the mortgage, the number of years over which it is going to be repaid, and the interest rate applied. But how do all these factors interrelate and, if one changes, what happens to the other figures?

It is finding the answers to these fairly fundamental questions that makes a mortgage repayment calculator such an indispensable tool. Finding such a calculator is very simple – just key "mortgage repayment calculator" into your internet search engine and you will be presented with a wide range of websites hosting an easy-to-use calculator. An especially neat and straight forward calculator appears on the money pages of the Guardian newspaper. Not only does this particular version distinguish between repayment and interest-only mortgages, but also lists the remaining mortgage balance you still owe after a given number of years, together with the amount of interest you will have paid by each year.

Using mortgage repayment calculators is simplicity itself. There will be one box in which you fill in the size of the mortgage you want to borrow. A second box will invite you to indicate the number of years over which the mortgage is to be repaid and a third box will ask for the applicable interest rate.

The resulting calculation will show you what the monthly repayments will be, the total sum of interest that you will need to pay over the term of the mortgage and (with most calculators) the balance outstanding on the mortgage over successive years.

The calculators are completely free to use, so can be experimented with as often as you like and until you are entirely comfortable with what information needs to be input and just what the results have to tell you.

There is something of a thrill in seeing the figures emerge so easily and quickly from the mortgage repayment calculator, since the sums involved are really quite complicated. With repayment mortgages, for example, they need to take into account that you will be paying interest on a diminishing outstanding mortgage balance, yet also that the interest payable needs to be "compounded" (outstanding interest due needs to be added back to the diminishing balance of the principal, because you will in effect be paying interest on the interest). Payments on interest-only mortgages, of course, are a lot easier to calculate – involving the multiplication of the amount borrowed, by the number of years, by the interest paid.

The mortgage repayment calculator really comes into its own, of course, when you have some serious decisions to make about your mortgage. If it is your first, then you will want to know down to the last penny just how much the monthly repayments will be for the interest rate you are quoted. You may also probably want to compare the shorter- and longer-term costs of a repayment mortgage against an interest only mortgage. The calculator will help you compare the offers available from competing mortgage lenders. If you already have a mortgage, you might be interested in the effects of any rise or reduction in interest rate. Would a remortgage be a sensible offer? Again, the mortgage repayment calculator will be an indispensable tool in helping you decide.

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Can You Save Money With A Mortgage Calculator?

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

When it comes to mortgages, there are so many different variables that come into play, it’s sometimes hard to know what your payments will be.

A mortgage calculator can save you a lot of money

Even if you already have a mortgage, you might want to gauge how quickly you could repay your mortgage if you increased your payments to a certain amount or the amount you would have to pay each month to repay your mortgage within a certain about out time.

You don’t have to be a mortgage expert to do these calculations. Using a mortgage calculator you can input information about your mortgage and the variable you want to change and find out numbers you are looking for.

Types of Mortgage Calculators

A mortgage loan payment calculator calculates the amount of your monthly payment based on the amount of the loan, the interest rate, points charged by the lender, cost of the loan, and the length of the loan.

By adjusting these factors in the mortgage calculator, you can estimate how your monthly payments will change. For example, if you are unsure of your interest rate, you can test various interest rates to see how your monthly payment will be affected.

Another scenario you can test using a mortgage calculator is how your monthly payment will change if shorten or lengthen the amount of the loan.

Some mortgage calculators allow you to test the amount you can afford to pay for a mortgage.

Into the mortgage calculator you enter your income information, the amount of down payment you would like to pay, debt information, and loan information. The mortgage calculator will return to you the amount you should qualify. The calculator also gives you the monthly payment and tax information for the mortgage you are qualified for.

Finding a Mortgage Calculator

Locating a mortgage calculator isn’t difficult at all. You can easily find one by entering the phrase “mortgage calculator” into a search engine.

The search engine will return several results of websites to you. Look at the different calculators and play around with the functionality offered.

Bankrate.com offers a mortgage calculator that is fairly easy to use. You can find the calculator by visiting the website and typing “mortgage calculator” in the search box.

In the calculator, enter your mortgage information and monthly payments, and then click the “Show/Recalculate Amortization Table” button. You will be shown a table listing your payments for the length of your loan, along with the principal and interest with that payment and the balance of your loan.

Using Bankrate’s mortgage calculator, you can also calculate the affects of adding extra money to your monthly payment, adding a lump sum annual payment, or a one-time payment during a specific month and year. When you recalculate the amortization table you can see the effect of the payments on your mortgage.

A mortgage calculator is a good way to play with factors associated with your mortgage and see the effect those factors have on your monthly payment and total payoff. If you have a mortgage, or you are thinking about getting one, a mortgage calculator will be of assistance to you. Download a free ebook that shows you how to get the best mortgage: Mortgages Your Complete Guid

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Should You Refinance Your Mortgage?-Take Help From Mortgage Calculator

Monday, May 4, 2009

Interest rates constantly fluctuate, so when is the time right to refinance your home? One of the tools that can help you decide this is a mortgage calculator.

It shows you what your new payments will be, and whether the difference is worth the leap right now.

The most common reason to do a straight refinance is to take advantage of lower interest rates to lower the payment or reduce the term (the number of years to finish paying off the note.)

To work with a refinance mortgage calculator, you'll need to know details about your current loan like the original loan amount, the original term (number of years to pay off), the number of months you've already paid, your interest rate, and, perhaps, the number of years until you intend to sell.

For the new loan, the mortgage calculator will want to know the loan points and interest rate on the new loan and approximate closing costs. Don't even try to figure it out on your own. Just look up several refinance mortgage calculators on the net and open them in separate windows or tabs in your browser. Start filling the figures into one after another, setting them to calculate as soon as they are loaded. Now, take a break, drink something uncaffeinated and relax a bit. When you're ready, return to the computer for the news.

Have a look at the figures for monthly payment, term, and the breakeven date. See if the mortgage calculators come anywhere near agreeing. Like the scoring in the old Olympics, throw out the high and low numbers and average the rest to get an approximation on your savings.

What you are concerned with is the breakeven date. The breakeven date is determined by the mortgage calculator as the month in which the savings on the mortgage covers the cost of the refinance itself. If the breakeven date is five years down the road and you're selling in four, then it doesn't matter how good the interest rates are.

You'll still lose money. On the other hand, if you're expecting to stick around more than five years, now is the time to go for it. You can redo the figures on the mortgage calculators with different interest rates and different terms (number of years to repay) to see where the breakeven point and the terms line up with what you can afford to give you the best deal.

But what if you have a different reason to refinance, say to "cash out" the equity of your home, for whatever reason. Emergencies happen, debt consolidation need to occur, and a good mortgage calculator can still help you figure out how to get your best deal.

When you feel like you know what you want, print out the best options, collect up your documents and head to the mortgage broker. One note: a refinance is a new note; you will be paying all appraisal fees, points and closing costs associated with a brand new note. The mortgage calculator doesn't take this into account. Proceed carefully and cautiously.

Don't sign until you understand everything!

Read my free E-book:Free Ebook

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