How is this mortgage calculator calculated?
Your monthly mortgage payment has up to five components, often abbreviated as PITI + PMI + HOA:
- Principal & Interest (P&I): calculated with the standard amortization formula
M = P × r(1 + r)n / ((1 + r)n − 1)where P is the loan amount (home price minus down payment), r is the monthly interest rate (annual rate ÷ 12), and n is the total number of monthly payments (years × 12). - Property tax: annual tax bill divided by 12 and collected into escrow.
- Homeowners insurance: annual premium divided by 12, also typically escrowed.
- PMI: required by most lenders when your down payment is less than 20%. Typical rates run 0.3% to 1.5% of the loan amount per year.
- HOA dues: a flat monthly fee charged by the homeowners association if applicable.
Total interest is the sum of all interest paid over the life of the loan: (monthly P&I × number of payments) − loan amount. Adding extra principal each month reduces the balance interest accrues against, which is why even small extra payments save substantial interest.