To calculate how much interest you’ll pay on a mortgage each month, you can use the monthly interest rate. Generally, you’ll find this by dividing your annual interest rate by 12. Then, multiply this by the amount of principal outstanding on the loan. Note that this means you’ll pay less interest later in the life of the mortgage, but keep in mind that this won’t always hold true for adjustable rate mortgages.
TL;DR (Too Long; Didn’t Read)
Divide you annual mortgage interest rate by 12 to get your monthly rate. Multiply this number by the total amount outstanding on the loan to get how much interest you owe for the month.
Understanding Mortgage Interest Rates
When you take out a mortgage to buy a home, you are borrowing money backed by the home’s price. Naturally, the lender won’t allow you to borrow money for free. To make money, the lender charges interest that accrues over the life of the loan. The amount that you borrowed in the first place is known as the principal on the mortgage.
On a fixed-rate mortgage, this interest rate will remain the same for the term of the loan, whether that’s 20 years, 30 years or longer. For an adjustable rate mortgage, the rate will change based on prevailing interest rates at various intervals.
Either way, you should be able to find your current interest rate in your mortgage paperwork or through your bank’s online lending site. You can also check to see if your mortgage statement specifies how much of the current month’s payment is attributed to interest. If it doesn’t, you can make that calculation yourself.
One way to find out how much interest you’ll owe in a given month, over the life of the mortgage or during other time periods is to use a mortgage interest payment calculator, such as the mortgage and interest calculator provided by Nerdwallet. Continue reading