Your Inside Guide to Minnesota Mortgages

 Mortgage Calculators

Mortgage Loan Calculator
Use this calculator to determine your monthly payment and amortization schedule.

Mortgage Qualifier
Can you buy your dream home? Find out just how much you can afford!

Refinance Breakeven
Should you refinance your mortgage? Use this calculator to determine when you will break even!

Rent vs. Buy
Are you better off buying your home, or should you continue to rent?

Mortgage Payoff
Save thousands of dollars in interest by increasing your monthly mortgage payment.

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Helpful Mortgage Definitions

Also referred to as a Variable Rate Mortgage. They both mean the same thing. An ARM is a mortgage with an interest rate that adjusts periodically to reflect changes in market conditions. Your mortgage payments are adjusted up or down (usually on an annual basis) as the interest rate changes. To protect you in a rising interest market, rate increases are limited (usually 2 percentage points annually; 6 percentage points over the life of the loan).

A loan that has level monthly payments that will amortize it over a stated term (e.g., 30 years) but that requires a lump sum payment of the entire principal balance at the end of a shorter term (e.g., 10 years).

A temporary buydown gives a borrower a reduced monthly payment during the first few years of a home loan and is typically paid for in an initial lump sum made by the seller, lender, or borrower. A permanent buydown is paid the same way but reduces the interest rate over the entire life of a home loan.

A home loan with a maximum loan amount of $252,700 that is eligible for purchase by FNMA and FHLMC.

A short-term, interim loan for financing the cost of home construction. The lender makes payments to the builder at periodic intervals as the work progresses.

A home loan that is not insured or guaranteed by the federal government. Contrast with government loan. Can be for conforming or non-conforming loan amounts.

An adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) that can be converted to a fixed rate loan under specified conditions.

An agency of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Its main activity is the insuring of residential mortgage loans made by private lenders. The FHA sets standards for construction and loan underwriting but does not lend money or plan or construct housing.

A New York Stock Exchange company and the largest non-bank financial services company in the world. It operates pursuant to a federal charter and is the nation's largest source of financing for home mortgages. It adds liquidity to the mortgage market by investing in home loans through the country.

A mortgage with an interest rate that stays the same (fixed) over the life of the mortgage. Monthly payments for a fixed rate mortgage are very stable and will not change.

A government-owned corporation within the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Created by Congress on September 1, 1968, GNMA assumed responsibility for the special assistance loan programs formerly administered by Fannie Mae.

Mortgage loans to veterans by lenders that are guaranteed by the Veterans' Administration (VA), enabling veterans to buy a residence with little or no money down.