How the size of your down payment changes the loan, the monthly payment and PMI
Estimates only, not financial advice. What you type stays on your device. Checked against sources on 5 Oct 2026.Putting 20% down on a conventional loan avoids PMI. On a $400,000 home at 6.5% for 30 years, 20% down is $80,000 and borrows $320,000, for $2,022.62 of principal and interest and $2,572.62 a month with example tax and insurance. With 10% down the same home costs $2,975.44 a month, including PMI. Try your own down payment in percent or dollars.
Rates and rules read from the sources listed on this page (the earliest on 5 Oct 2026); they may have changed since.
Enter the home price and switch the down payment between percent and dollars.
Try 3%, 10% and 20% and watch the loan amount and monthly payment change.
Below 20%, enter the PMI rate quoted to you to see its monthly cost.
Compare the total paid over the loan for each down payment in the schedule.
The Mortgage Calculator works out the monthly payment on a conventional US home loan the way a lender's estimate presents it: principal and interest, property tax, homeowners insurance, private mortgage insurance and HOA dues. Lenders call the first four PITI.
PMI. With less than 20% down, most conventional loans charge PMI. The rate comes from your lender's quote, so it is an input; the 0.5% shown is an example. The Homeowners Protection Act sets when it ends: automatically when the balance on the original schedule reaches 78% of the home's original value, on request at 80% if your payment record is good and the value has not fallen, and in any case after the middle of the loan term. Extra payments do not move the automatic date, but they bring the 80% request date forward, which the switch on the page shows.
What it does not do. It covers fixed-rate loans only. Adjustable rates, FHA and VA loans (use the FHA Loan Calculator or VA Loan Calculator), closing costs, points, lender-paid mortgage insurance and changes in tax or insurance over time are not modelled.
The rest of the article, and all 6 questions about Mortgage Calculator, are on the Mortgage Calculator page.
Principal and interest come from the amortization formula P × r × (1 + r)^n ÷ ((1 + r)^n − 1), where r is the yearly rate divided by 12. Borrowing $360,000 at 6.5% for 30 years gives $2,275.44. Monthly property tax, insurance, PMI and HOA dues are then added on top.
Under the Homeowners Protection Act, borrower-paid PMI ends automatically when the balance on the original schedule reaches 78% of the home's original value, if payments are current. A borrower can ask to cancel it at 80%, with a good payment record. It cannot continue past the midpoint of the loan term.
PMI is priced by the lender and mortgage insurer, mainly on the credit score and the down payment, so the rate is an input here. As an example, 0.5% a year on a $360,000 loan is $150 a month. Use the rate on your loan estimate, which lists the monthly mortgage insurance in the projected payments.
PITI is principal, interest, taxes and insurance: the four parts of most monthly mortgage payments. Taxes and insurance are usually collected into an escrow account by the servicer and paid when due. PMI and HOA dues are separate costs, and this calculator adds both to show the full monthly housing payment.
Rates and rules change; check the source before you rely on a figure.
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Same job, other tools: VA Mortgage Calculator – Full VA house payment with zero down: principal, interest, property tax and insurance · Credit Card Interest Calculator – Daily and monthly interest on a card balance from its APR, and the total until paid off · Credit Card Minimum Payment Calculator – How long paying only the minimum takes and what it costs, against the 36-month payment.
On the related tools: CLTV Calculator – Combined loan-to-value and HCLTV from your mortgage, second loans and credit line.
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