The crossing
For twenty years, most of what you pay is interest.
On a $400,000 loan at an illustrative 6.5% over 30 years, the interest thread runs thicker than the principal thread until month 233 — 19 yr 5 mo in. That is the single most useful fact about an amortising loan, and almost no lender's site draws it.
- $2,528.27
- $510,178
- Month 233
The swatch book
Twenty programmes, each a different cloth.
A programme is not a rate. It is a set of rules about who qualifies, what is insured, what that insurance costs, and how you get out of it. Pull a swatch.
The bench
Thirteen calculators, and every assumption on the page.
Each one is its own page with its own URL, so a result can be shared as a link. Each states the rule it is applying and where that rule comes from.
Monthly payment
Every part of PITI named and costed — not one number.
Amortisation
360 rows, switchable month-wise and year-wise.
Affordability
A price range, and which constraint actually binds it.
Refinance
The month it truly pays back, not just the payment drop.
Extra payment
Months removed and interest saved, one-off or recurring.
Rent vs buy
Both households treated by exactly the same rules.
FHA MIP
Upfront, annual, and — the part most tools get wrong — for how long.
VA funding fee
First use, subsequent use, and exempt.
Points
Break-even measured against how long you actually stay.
All thirteenNotes, not reviews
What people said this actually changed.
These are written for the demonstration. They are not verified reviews, there is no star rating attached to them, and no count is published — because a fictional company with a review score is the exact thing this rebuild was asked to remove.
The thing that helped was seeing mortgage insurance drawn as its own ribbon. Every other calculator folded it into one number and I had no idea it was a quarter of what I was paying.
I had been told my break-even was fourteen months. Once the reset term was counted properly it was closer to four years, which changed my answer entirely.
The funding fee changing with the down payment and with whether it is your first use is not obvious anywhere. Having it as its own page made it obvious.
What I wanted was a comparison that did not have its thumb on the scale. Investing the down payment on the renting side is the whole argument and most tools just leave it out.
The learning centre
Plain answers, no pitch attached.
A Step-by-Step Guide to Shopping for a New Home
From pre-approval to closing day, here is the sequence every buyer should understand before they start touring homes.
First-Time BuyersFirst-Time Homebuyer's Checklist
A practical, plain-English checklist to make sure your first home purchase goes smoothly.
Buying BasicsUnderstanding Cash to Close
What "cash to close" actually means and how to make sure you have it ready on closing day.