With a shorter loan term, borrowers save money in the long run, but you'll have higher monthly payments. And, as with many refinances, you'll also have to pay closing costs to refinance from 30 to 15 years.
The primary benefit of a 15-year mortgage is the long-term savings. In our example above, you'd save more than a quarter of a million dollars by choosing the shorter loan term. The interest rate on a 15-year mortgage is also typically lower than what mortgage lenders are charging for a 30-year mortgage.
Disadvantages of a 15-year fixed mortgage
Potentially tougher qualification requirements: Your lender will want to verify that your income can accommodate these larger payments. As such, qualifying for a 15-year loan might be harder than for a 30-year one.
If you make an extra payment of $700 a month, you'll pay off your mortgage in about 15 years and save about $128,000 in interest. If $700 a month is too much, even an extra $50 – $200 a month can make a difference.
Making additional principal payments will shorten the length of your mortgage term and allow you to build equity faster. Because your balance is being paid down faster, you'll have fewer total payments to make, in-turn leading to more savings.
Making extra payments of $500/month could save you $60,798 in interest over the life of the loan. You could own your house 13 years sooner than under your current payment. These calculations are tools for learning more about the mortgage process and are for educational/estimation purposes only.
The 15-year mortgage has some advantages when compared to the 30-year, such as less overall interest paid, a lower interest rate, lower fees, and forced savings. There are, however, some disadvantages as well, such as higher monthly payments, less affordability, and less money going toward savings.
It can be smart to refinance to a shorter term. Refinancing from a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage into a 15-year fixed loan can help you pay down your loan sooner and pay significantly less interest. You'll own your home outright and be free of mortgage debt that much sooner.
Lenders charge a lower interest rate for 15-year loans because it's easier to make predictions about repayment over a 15-year horizon than it is over a 30-year horizon. Another reason for the savings? Home buyers are borrowing the money for half the time, which dramatically reduces the cost of borrowing.
Analysts with Fannie Mae and the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) both project that rates will fall going into 2024 and throughout next year. Fannie Mae economists expect rates to drop more quickly, falling below 6% by Q4 2024. Meanwhile, the MBA's forecast for Q4 2024 is 6.1% and 5.9% for Q1 2025.
A: Dave Ramsey recommends a 15-year, fixed-rate conventional loan.
If you pay $200 extra a month towards principal, you can cut your loan term by more than 8 years and reduce the interest paid by more than $44,000. Another way to pay down your mortgage in less time is to make half-monthly payments every 2 weeks, instead of 1 full monthly payment.
Even one or two extra mortgage payments a year can help you make a much larger dent in your mortgage debt. This not only means you'll get rid of your mortgage faster; it also means you'll get rid of your mortgage more cheaply. A shorter loan = fewer payments = fewer interest fees.
Making additional principal payments reduces the amount of money you'll pay interest on – before it can accrue. This can knock years off your mortgage term and save you thousands of dollars.
People with a 15-year term pay more per month than those with a 30-year term. In exchange, they are given a lower interest rate and will pay their loan off faster. Borrowers with a 15-year term pay their debt in half the time and possibly save thousands of dollars over the life of their mortgage.
FHA loans are available with fixed or adjustable rates and for 30- or 15-year terms. FHA loans have low down payment requirements. You can put down as little as 3.5%.
A 15-year fixed mortgage requires a down payment of at least 3%.
Qualifying for a 15-year Fixed mortgage is like qualifying for any other loan. You will need a good credit score and low DTI. Each loan type and lender have different applicable requirements to qualify. For instance, an FHA 15-year Fixed mortgage will have lower credit score requirements than a Conventional one.
It will cost about 10–20% more to pay off a 30 year mortgage in 15 years than to take a 15 year mortgage and pay it off in that time. Generally, that's how much higher mortgage interest rates are on 30-year versus 15-year mortgages, about 10–20% higher.
When you pay an extra $100 on your monthly mortgage payment, that entire amount goes to principal. You'll reduce your total balance much more quickly when you make an extra payment that goes directly to repaying your balance. You could cut around four years off your repayment time with just an extra $100 per month.
Ideally, you want your extra payments to go towards the principal amount. However, many lenders will apply the extra payments to any interest accrued since your last payment and then apply anything left over to the principal amount. Other times, lenders may apply extra funds to next month's payment.