Mortgage Calculator

About Mortgage Calculator

A mortgage calculator with taxes and insurance estimates your monthly PITI payment — principal, interest, property tax, and home insurance. Enter the home price, down payment, interest rate, and term, plus optional yearly property tax and insurance, and it breaks down your monthly principal and interest, taxes, and insurance, along with the total interest over the life of the loan. It updates instantly in your browser.

What PITI actually covers

PITI is principal, interest, taxes, and insurance — the four parts of a typical monthly housing payment. Principal and interest are the loan itself and are fixed for a fixed-rate mortgage. Taxes and insurance are not part of the loan at all; the lender collects them monthly into an escrow account and pays the bills when they fall due.

That distinction matters because only principal and interest are fixed. Property taxes are reassessed and insurance premiums are re-rated, so a payment advertised as fixed still moves — usually upward — as the escrow portion is recalculated each year. A rise of several percent in the total payment is routine even on a fixed-rate loan.

Costs this calculator does not include

Mortgage insurance is the big one. Putting down less than 20% typically triggers a premium that adds meaningfully to the monthly figure, and depending on the loan type it may fall away automatically at a certain equity level or persist for the life of the loan. It is not part of PITI and it is easy to forget when budgeting.

Homeowners association fees, maintenance, and utilities also sit outside the calculation. A common planning heuristic is to set aside around 1% of the property value per year for maintenance — on a 300,000 home that is 250 a month that no mortgage calculator will show you, and it is the cost that most often surprises first-time buyers.

How much the term changes the total

Term length is the biggest lever on total cost. A 300,000 loan at 6.5% costs about 1,896 a month over 30 years and about 2,613 over 15. The shorter term is 717 more each month, but the total interest falls from roughly 382,600 to 170,300 — a saving of over 212,000 for the same house.

The trade-off is flexibility. A 30-year term with voluntary overpayments gets you much of the interest saving while leaving you the option to pay only the minimum in a difficult year. A 15-year term commits you. Which is right depends on how stable your income is, not only on the arithmetic.

Rate, points, and what you are actually offered

Advertised rates assume an excellent credit profile, a substantial deposit, and a conforming loan. The rate you are quoted may differ, and small differences compound: on that 300,000 loan, 6.5% versus 7% is about 100 a month and roughly 36,000 over the term. It is worth shopping the rate harder than almost any other cost in the purchase.

Discount points let you pay upfront to lower the rate. Whether that pays off is a break-even calculation — divide the cost of the points by the monthly saving to get the number of months you must keep the loan to come out ahead. If you are likely to move or refinance before then, points are a loss. Use this calculator for planning and the lender's official estimate for the numbers that bind.

Frequently asked questions

What is PITI?

PITI stands for Principal, Interest, Taxes, and Insurance — the four parts of a typical monthly mortgage payment. This PITI calculator adds property tax and home insurance on top of your principal and interest.

How is the monthly mortgage payment calculated?

Principal and interest use the standard amortization formula from the loan amount (home price minus down payment), rate, and term. Monthly property tax and insurance are the yearly figures divided by twelve.

Does the calculator include PMI or HOA fees?

Not as separate fields — you can fold estimates for PMI or HOA dues into the insurance field. The core calculation covers principal, interest, property tax, and home insurance.

Is this a loan offer?

No. It's an estimate based on the numbers you enter. Actual rates, taxes, and fees vary by lender and location.