“A house is the largest purchase most of us will ever make so it’s important to calculate what your mortgage payment will be and how much you can afford.” 

While technically not the usual article you expect to read on the Kapoor Money Minute blog, the information about this Bankrate mortgage calculator can help you determine how much your monthly home mortgage payment will be.  To use the calculator, you simply input the requested financial information in the boxes provided and the calculator will determine your monthly mortgage payment.  You can also access an amortization table that shows how much of each payment is for interest and how is used to reduce the unpaid balance on your home mortgage.

In addition to this calculator, the Bankrate.com site provides additional calculators and information on many personal financial topics.  Take a look and be surprised at the amount of useful information available on this site.

 For more information, click here.

Teaching Suggestions

You may want to use the information in this blog post and the original article to

• Use the calculator to help students determine how much house they can afford.
• Discuss other expenses that could increase the cost of home ownership.

Discussion Questions

1. Take a look at the information that you must enter in order to use the mortgage calculator described in this article.  How do the amount of the mortgage, interest rate, and term of loan impact the monthly payment for your home mortgage?
2. In addition to your monthly home mortgage payment, what other costs can you expect when you buy a home?
3. Buying a home is a “big” financial decision. Are there additional factors besides mortgage payment and other home ownership expenses that you should consider before making a decision to buy a home?