How to use this UK mortgage calculator
- Property price and deposit: enter the deposit in pounds or as a percentage of the price.
- Interest rate and mortgage term: the rate offered and the number of years.
- Mortgage type: repayment or interest-only.
- Stamp Duty estimate: choose home mover or first-time buyer for England and Northern Ireland, or leave it out.
You'll see your monthly payment, the loan amount, your loan-to-value, the total interest and an estimate of Stamp Duty. For repayment mortgages, the amortisation schedule shows how the balance falls year by year.
How the payment is worked out
Worked example
Stretching the same loan to 30 years lowers the repayment to £1,368.05 a month but adds interest. If the rate were 5% instead of 4.5%, the 25-year payment would rise to £1,578.39.
Stamp Duty in England and Northern Ireland
Stamp Duty Land Tax is charged in slices of the price, like Income Tax:
| Portion of the price | Home mover | First-time buyer (price up to £500,000) |
|---|---|---|
| Up to £125,000 | 0% | 0% |
| £125,001 to £250,000 | 2% | 0% |
| £250,001 to £300,000 | 5% | 0% |
| £300,001 to £500,000 | 5% | 5% |
| £500,001 to £925,000 | 5% | No relief: home mover rates apply |
| £925,001 to £1.5 million | 10% | Not applicable |
| Above £1.5 million | 12% | Not applicable |
A 5% surcharge usually applies on top if you'll own more than one home after the purchase. Scotland charges Land and Buildings Transaction Tax and Wales charges Land Transaction Tax, with different bands.
Repayment or interest-only?
Most residential mortgages are on a repayment basis. Interest-only lowers the monthly cost, but the debt doesn't shrink, and lenders will want to see a credible way to repay the loan at the end, such as investments or other property. Some borrowers choose part-and-part mortgages that combine the two.
Tips for getting a better mortgage
- Lower your LTV. Even a small increase in deposit can move you into a cheaper rate band.
- Compare the total cost, not just the rate. A low rate with a large arrangement fee can cost more than a slightly higher rate with no fee.
- Plan for the end of your deal. Diarise when your fixed rate ends so you can remortgage before moving to the standard variable rate.
- Check affordability. Lenders test whether you could afford payments at higher rates; make sure the payment fits your budget too, using our take-home pay calculator.
- Consider a broker. A mortgage broker can compare deals across lenders.
How much can I borrow?
Lenders decide how much to lend by looking at your income, your regular outgoings and how your payments would cope if rates rose. The amount is often expressed as a multiple of your income, but affordability checks mean two people with the same salary can be offered different amounts. A mortgage in principle (also called an agreement in principle) gives you an idea of what a lender may offer before you make an offer on a home.
Overpaying your mortgage
Paying more than your monthly payment reduces your balance faster, so you pay less interest and can finish the mortgage sooner. Many fixed-rate deals allow you to overpay a certain amount each year without an early repayment charge; going above that limit during the deal period can trigger a charge. Check your mortgage offer before overpaying, and keep an emergency fund in place first, because money paid into your mortgage isn't easy to get back.
Fixed, tracker or variable?
A fixed-rate deal keeps your payment the same for a set period, often two or five years, which makes budgeting easier. A tracker follows the Bank of England base rate plus a margin, so the payment can rise or fall. A lender's standard variable rate is set by the lender and is usually what you move to when a deal ends. Run the calculator at a few rates to see how your payment could change when your deal ends.
What this calculator doesn't include
The results assume the rate stays the same for the whole term. They don't include arrangement, valuation, legal or broker fees, insurance, or Stamp Duty surcharges for additional homes or non-UK residents, and the Stamp Duty estimate covers England and Northern Ireland only. Always check the figures in your mortgage illustration and with your conveyancer.