Mortgage Calculator | Payment, PITI & Schedule

Quick Start Guide

  1. Enter home price: The purchase price of the home you're considering.
  2. Set your down payment: As a percentage or dollar amount — PMI is calculated automatically if it's under 20%.
  3. Enter the interest rate: The annual percentage rate (APR) offered by your lender.
  4. Choose your loan term: Typically 15 or 30 years, or a custom term.
  5. Add property costs: Property taxes, home insurance, PMI, and HOA fees.
  6. View your results: Total monthly payment (PITI) broken down into principal, interest, taxes, and insurance.
  7. Compare rent vs. buy: Switch to Rent vs Buy mode to compare long-term costs.

Understanding Your Mortgage Payment

What "Total Monthly Payment" actually includes

The headline number is PITI+HOA: Principal, Interest, property Tax, home Insurance, PMI (if applicable), and HOA dues. Lenders qualify you against this full number, not just principal and interest — two homes with identical loan amounts can have very different total payments once tax and insurance rates differ.

When PMI actually goes away

PMI is required whenever your down payment is under 20%, but it does not last the full loan term. This calculator automatically drops PMI from the payment once your loan balance falls to 78% of the original home value — the federal automatic-termination threshold — and shows the projected date it happens.

Five modes, five different questions

Standard mode answers "what will I pay." Affordability flips the question around to "what home price fits my budget." Rent vs Buy compares renting against buying over time. Refinance compares your current loan against a new one. Stress Test shows how your payment would change if rates or costs rose — useful for judging how much margin you have before signing.

Extra payments and the amortization schedule

Adding a recurring extra payment reduces principal faster, which shortens the loan and lowers total interest — and, if you have PMI, moves up the date it terminates too. The schedule below shows the month-by-month split between principal and interest so you can see exactly where that extra payment has the most impact.

What this calculator does not cover

This models a standard fixed-rate mortgage with optional PMI, tax, insurance, and HOA. It does not model adjustable-rate resets, closing-cost financing beyond the Refinance mode, or mortgage insurance premium structures specific to government-backed loans (FHA/VA) — check your loan program's terms for those specifics.

Features

Mortgage Scenarios: Compare different mortgage options side-by-side. Adjust interest rates, loan terms, and down payments to see how they affect your monthly payment and total cost.

Affordability Calculator: Calculate how much home you can afford based on your monthly budget. Enter your budget and see the maximum home price you can purchase.

Rent vs Buy Comparison: Compare the long-term financial impact of renting versus buying. See breakeven points, total costs, and equity building over time.

Amortization Schedule: View a detailed month-by-month breakdown of your loan payments. See how much goes to principal vs interest over the life of the loan.

Payment Charts: Visualize your payment breakdown with interactive charts. Switch between monthly payment view and total cost view to see different perspectives.

Export Data: Export your mortgage calculations to JSON, CSV, or PDF format for record-keeping or sharing with lenders.

Common Use Cases

Home Purchase Planning: calculate total monthly payment including PITI, factor in PMI if your down payment is under 20%, and include HOA fees for condos or planned communities.

Rent vs Buy Decision: use Rent vs Buy mode to compare long-term costs, see the breakeven point when buying becomes cheaper than renting, and factor in rent increases, home appreciation, and tax benefits.

Affordability Analysis: use Affordability mode to work backwards from your monthly budget, entering your maximum monthly housing budget to see the maximum home price you can afford.

Refinancing Evaluation: compare your current mortgage with new loan terms, calculate potential monthly savings, and see how different interest rates affect your payment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly mortgage payment (PITI) includes Principal, Interest, property Taxes, and home Insurance. Enter home price, down payment, interest rate, loan term, and your property tax/insurance estimates, and the calculator handles the math automatically — PMI is added automatically whenever your down payment is under 20%.
PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance) is required when your down payment is less than 20% of the home price — typically 0.5-1% of the loan amount annually. The calculator adds it automatically below that threshold and removes it once your balance reaches 78% of the original home value, the federal automatic-termination point.
Key factors include your credit score, down payment size, loan term, property type, and market conditions. A higher credit score and larger down payment typically qualify you for a lower rate.
Use Rent vs Buy mode to compare long-term costs — it factors in rent increases, home appreciation, tax benefits, and upfront costs, and shows the breakeven point where buying becomes cheaper than renting. As a rule of thumb, buying tends to make more sense if you plan to stay 5+ years.
A common guideline is keeping your total mortgage payment under 28% of your gross monthly income. Use Affordability mode to work backwards from your monthly budget instead — enter your maximum housing budget and it factors in loan terms, taxes, insurance, PMI, and HOA fees to find the maximum home price.
Closing costs typically run 2-5% of the loan amount and include appraisal fees, title insurance, attorney fees, and prepaid items like property taxes — budget for these separately from your down payment.
A 15-year mortgage has higher monthly payments but far less total interest paid. A 30-year mortgage lowers the monthly payment but costs more in total interest — as a rough guide, 15-year terms save 50%+ in interest but roughly double the monthly payment. Compare both terms directly in the calculator.

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