So let's play around with how these different factors can affect a mortgage. Go to realtor.com or Zillow.com and find a house for sale that you would like to buy. It can be anywhere in the U.S. and it can be a dream home or a realistic home. 1. Write down the address and the asking price here. $494,000 46 Palmer Rd. Unit 8 Monson, Ma 01057 2. Go to the website of a local bank and find the current interest rates for each of the following types of mortgages 15 year fixed 30 year fixed 5/1 30 year variable rate (fixed for 5 years then changes each year after that) rate rate 10/1 30 year variable rate (fixed for 10 years then changes each year after that) Because the variable rate is impossible to predict after the fixed portion of the loan, we are going 6y to play around with the fixed rate loans. Remember in a variable rate loan, the rate could go up or down depending on the interest rates of the future and there is no way to predict the future. Let's see how the other factors affect your payments and the amount of interest you end up paying. 3. Use this spreadsheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AfKhduLjPKM3zaWTSL--49wr5bj10Jho3JDr4hP pX90/edit?usp=sharing and this online calculator https://www.hsh.com/calc-pmi.html In row 8 you will need to input the asking price of your desired home, the interest rate of the 15 year fixed mortgage and the interest rate for the 30 year fixed mortgage. Price of Home 494,000 494,000 Down Payment Percent Loan Amount Loan Term Interest Rate Debt to Income Ratio Credit Score Total Monthly Payment H 10 444,600.00 15 6.29% >45% 720 10 444,600.00 15 6.29% 45% 720 10 444,600.00 30 7.03%