Home & Mortgage

How to use the Home & Mortgage calculators

Payments, payoff plans, renting, and the equity in a house.

There are 20 calculators in Home & Mortgage. Each one has its own fields and its own formula. They are listed on this page so you can pick the question you actually have. Open the tool, replace the example, and press Calculate. The result stays in the browser.

Do not treat this index as a single worksheet. A payment, a payoff date, and a tax estimate answer different questions. Adding the headlines together mixes kinds of dollars. Read one result, then open the next tool if the question changed.

What each calculator is for

Mortgage Calculator — Estimate a full monthly housing payment from price, down payment, rate, tax, insurance, PMI, and HOA dues. The form includes Home price, Down payment, Interest rate, Loan term. Principal, interest, tax, insurance, PMI, and HOA in one payment.

Amortization Calculator — Build a yearly or monthly amortization schedule and see how extra principal changes interest. The form includes Loan amount, Interest rate, Term, Extra principal per month. A schedule that shows where each payment goes.

Mortgage Payoff Calculator — See how a lump sum and a higher monthly payment change the date and the interest left on a mortgage. The form includes Current balance, Interest rate, Scheduled monthly payment, Extra principal each month. Lump sum plus extra monthly principal.

House Affordability Calculator — Turn income, debts, and a down payment into a home price using housing-ratio limits you can edit. The form includes Gross annual income, Other monthly debt payments, Down payment available, Expected interest rate. A price that fits income and the debts you already have.

Rent Calculator — Compare monthly rent and other housing costs with gross income and read the rent-to-income ratio. The form includes Monthly rent, Other monthly housing costs, Gross monthly income. Rent as a share of monthly income.

Debt-to-Income Calculator — Calculate front-end and back-end debt-to-income ratios from income, housing, and other monthly debts. The form includes Gross monthly income, Monthly housing payment, Other monthly debt payments. Front-end and back-end ratios, side by side.

Real Estate Calculator — Estimate cap rate, net operating income, and cash-on-cash return for a rental property. The form includes Purchase price, Monthly rent, Yearly operating expenses, Down payment. Cap rate and cash-on-cash from rent and expenses.

Refinance Calculator — Compare your current mortgage payment and interest with a new rate, term, and closing costs. The form includes Current balance, Current rate, Years left on the current loan, New rate. Break-even months against the interest you still pay.

Rental Property Calculator — Project rental cash flow, cap rate, and equity after a holding period with appreciation. The form includes Purchase price, Monthly rent, Yearly operating expenses, Down payment. Cash flow now and equity at the end of the hold.

APR Calculator — Turn a note rate and upfront fees into an annual percentage rate for a fixed loan. The form includes Loan amount, Note rate, Upfront fees, Term. The rate that includes upfront fees.

The rest of this set

FHA Loan Calculator — Estimate an FHA payment with a low down payment, upfront mortgage insurance, and annual MIP. The form includes Home price, Down payment, Interest rate, Term. Down payment, upfront MIP, and the annual premium.

VA Mortgage Calculator — Estimate a VA loan payment with an editable funding fee and a waiver switch. The form includes Home price, Down payment, Interest rate, Term. A zero-down payment with the funding fee shown.

Home Equity Loan Calculator — Size a fixed home equity loan and check it against a combined loan-to-value cap. The form includes Home value, Current mortgage balance, Equity loan amount, Combined LTV cap. A second loan, with the combined LTV beside it.

HELOC Calculator — Compare the interest-only draw payment on a HELOC with the later amortizing payment. The form includes Credit limit, Balance you expect to carry, Current rate, Repayment term after the draw. Interest-only now, amortizing payment later.

Down Payment Calculator — Set a down-payment percent and see the monthly savings that reach it on your timeline. The form includes Target home price, Down payment, Already saved, Months to save. The monthly amount that closes the gap.

Rent vs Buy Calculator — Compare ending wealth from buying and from renting over a horizon you choose. The form includes Home price, Down payment, Mortgage rate, Mortgage term. Ending wealth, not a slogan about throwing money away.

Biweekly Mortgage Calculator — Compare a standard monthly mortgage with half the payment every two weeks. The form includes Loan amount, Interest rate, Original term. Thirteen monthly payments a year, without the slogan.

Extra Payment Calculator — Add a fixed extra principal amount to a loan and read the new interest and payoff time. The form includes Loan amount, Interest rate, Term, Extra principal each month. One extra amount, every month, on any fixed loan.

Mortgage Comparison Calculator — Compare payment and total interest on two mortgage offers side by side. The form includes Offer A loan amount, Offer A rate, Offer A term, Offer B loan amount. Two offers, one interest difference.

Loan-to-Value Calculator — Divide a loan by a property value and read the equity share that remains. The form includes Property value, Loan balance. Loan, value, and the equity in between.

What this category will not do

Home & Mortgage pages on this desk are educational. They do not apply for a loan, file a return, or move money. Where a 2026 public figure is used, the methodology names the limit and the page says what it leaves out.

If a result looks wrong, check the field that does not match your paperwork before you blame the formula. A payment that includes tax and insurance will not match a quote that is principal and interest only. A contribution above a legal limit will still compound on this desk if you type it, which is why the retirement pages tell you to type only what you are allowed to add.

A session on this page

Pick one question in Home & Mortgage and open only that calculator. Mortgage, Amortization, Mortgage Payoff, House Affordability, Rent, Debt-to-Income, Real Estate, Refinance, Rental Property, APR, FHA Loan, VA Mortgage, Home Equity Loan, HELOC, Down Payment, Rent vs Buy, Biweekly Mortgage, Extra Payment, Mortgage Comparison, Loan-to-Value are the choices. Read the blurb under the name. If the blurb is not your question, go back and choose again. Running three tools “just in case” produces three headlines that were never meant to be added.

On the tool you chose, leave the example long enough to press Calculate once. You are checking that a result appears and that the labels match the story in the heading. Then replace every field. Payments, payoff plans, renting, and the equity in a house. The example numbers on each form are there so the formula can be demonstrated. They are not a suggestion that your price, payment, or income should look like the default.

Write down the headline and the two lines under it that you might quote later. If you cannot say which input produced them, you are not ready to use them. Change the input you are least sure about and press Calculate a second time. The size of the move tells you whether to go find a better source for that input before you decide.

After you press Calculate

Home & Mortgage stays inside finance math. It does not collect an application and it does not rank products. When the result is an estimate of tax, a retirement limit, or a payment a lender could quote differently, the page says so. The disclaimer and the methodology apply to every link on this index, including Mortgage Calculator and Loan-to-Value Calculator.

In one line each, the set is: Mortgage Calculator (Principal, interest, tax, insurance, PMI, and HOA in one payment.); Amortization Calculator (A schedule that shows where each payment goes.); Mortgage Payoff Calculator (Lump sum plus extra monthly principal.); House Affordability Calculator (A price that fits income and the debts you already have.); Rent Calculator (Rent as a share of monthly income.); Debt-to-Income Calculator (Front-end and back-end ratios, side by side.); Real Estate Calculator (Cap rate and cash-on-cash from rent and expenses.); Refinance Calculator (Break-even months against the interest you still pay.); Rental Property Calculator (Cash flow now and equity at the end of the hold.); APR Calculator (The rate that includes upfront fees.); FHA Loan Calculator (Down payment, upfront MIP, and the annual premium.); VA Mortgage Calculator (A zero-down payment with the funding fee shown.); Home Equity Loan Calculator (A second loan, with the combined LTV beside it.); HELOC Calculator (Interest-only now, amortizing payment later.); Down Payment Calculator (The monthly amount that closes the gap.); Rent vs Buy Calculator (Ending wealth, not a slogan about throwing money away.); Biweekly Mortgage Calculator (Thirteen monthly payments a year, without the slogan.); Extra Payment Calculator (One extra amount, every month, on any fixed loan.); Mortgage Comparison Calculator (Two offers, one interest difference.); Loan-to-Value Calculator (Loan, value, and the equity in between.). Open the one whose line matches the paper in front of you.

FAQs