Mortgage Calculator & Strategy Comparison

Use this calculator to estimate your monthly mortgage payments, including principal, interest, property taxes, and homeowners insurance (PITI). You can view a detailed amortization schedule and visualize your loan repayment journey.

Making extra principal payments is a powerful strategy to save money and build equity faster. Every extra dollar you pay towards the principal reduces the loan balance, which in turn reduces the amount of interest you'll pay over the life of the loan. This can shorten your loan term by months or even years. Use the "Extra Monthly Principal" field to see the impact.

It's important to understand that mortgage interest is typically "front-loaded." This means that in the early years of your loan, a larger portion of your monthly payment goes toward interest rather than principal. As your loan balance decreases over time, the interest portion of your payment gets smaller, and more of your money goes toward building equity. This is why even small extra principal payments, especially early on, can have such a dramatic effect on your total interest paid.

Use the Compare Scenarios button below to model two different mortgage strategies side-by-side. You can compare different loan terms (e.g., 15 vs. 30 years), interest rates, or down payment amounts to see how each choice impacts your monthly payment and total cost over time.