Sunday, November 30, 2008

Understanding The Home Mortgage Calculator

When you have finally decided to take that plunge into home ownership, it can be a scary and exciting time and you may be worried if you are really able to afford it. But then again, there is that part of you who is thinking you can't afford not to buy a home. So, where is a good place to start in figuring out what you can and cannot afford? Your best bet is to really figure out what your bring home monthly income is and then use a home mortgage calculator to determine what you have going out in expenses versus what you have coming in with income.

Entering in the price of the house, including taxes and insurance as well as the number of months of the loan and the interest rate will return a monthly payment amount. Additionally, most home mortgage calculators will allow for input of a down payment, where different amounts can be entered to show how adding a couple of thousand to the down payment will trim dollars from the monthly payment. Playing with the variables allows a potential home buyer to look at all the options quickly and easily, helping them determine if purchasing the home is a viable option. The only real problem with using mortgage calculators to calculate a monthly payment is the interest rate that particular user may be paying. If something in their past gives them a lower credit score, they will need to know how much they will be charged to make the figures more accurate.

If you are desperate to buy a home and really need to find a way to make it work, make sure you take a really close look at your expenses that are eating up your money each month. Are there things you can let go of? Are there things that you can make cut backs in? And make sure when using a home mortgage calculator, whether or not it is including the figures for your home owners insurance and for your property taxes as these are bills that cannot be let go of and should never run behind. Generally, loan  calculator will have a spot to place an estimate for those but you just want to double check.

Also, you may want to consider seeing what help is available for down payment and closing costs as the more you can place as a down payment, the lower your monthly mortgage payments will be. You will see, if you play around with a home mortgage calculator, how much of a monthly difference it will make for you the more you are able to put down. So, as for down payments, you want to be able to input the most realistic down payment amount in the calculator in order to get the best result.

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