See roughly what it costs to lower your interest rate — and what that does to your monthly payment.
Very rough estimates. Not a loan quote.
Start with the loan
Change any of these. Everything below updates as you type. If you already have a quote from a lender, plug in their numbers for the closest estimate.
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Freddie Mac weekly average — checking for this week's…
Everything else in the payment
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Maricopa & Pinal run roughly 0.4–0.7%
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Per year
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Per month
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Per year, on the loan amount
Your starting payment, before any buy-down
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Buying points
You pay money up front and your lender gives you a lower rate — for the entire life of the loan. One point costs about 1% of the loan amount and usually knocks the rate down about a quarter percent, though every lender prices this differently.
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0.25% is the common rule of thumb
Estimated payment with points
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New rate
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Cost up front
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Break-even
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Interest saved
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Side by side
No points
With points
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Temporary buy-down
Here the rate isn't really lower — someone (usually the seller, a builder, or occasionally the lender) pre-pays part of your payment into a subsidy account. Your payment starts low and steps up each year until you're at the real note rate. Very common on new builds right now.
How this works: the structure is what sets your payment. The money on the table decides which structures you can actually get. Put in what's being offered and the structure above switches to the biggest one that money covers.
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Enter an amount and the structure switches to the biggest one it covers
What that money actually buys
Structure
Year 1 payment
What it costs
With this money
Your first-year payment
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What the payment does over time
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What you pay What the subsidy covers
Year by year
Period
Effective rate
Your payment
Subsidy
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Two things to know. You still have to qualify at the full note rate — lenders won't approve you on the discounted payment, so this doesn't stretch your buying power. And the step-up is real: budget for the year the subsidy runs out. If you refinance or sell before it's used up, the leftover funds usually go toward your loan, not back to you as cash — the buy-down agreement spells that out.
What's a seller credit actually worth?
This is the negotiation question. If a seller is willing to give you money, you can take it three different ways — and they don't do the same thing. Put the credit amount in below.
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As discount points
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As a temporary buy-down
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As a price reduction
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All three, over the first five years
Option
Year 1 / month
Year 3+ / month
5-yr payments
Cash to close
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Seller contributions are capped — the limit depends on your loan type, occupancy, and down payment, and a credit can't exceed your actual costs. Your lender will confirm what's allowed before you write the offer.
Now let's get you real numbers
Everything on this page is a rough estimate built on simple math — it doesn't know your credit score, your loan program, or how a lender actually prices points today. The next step is a real quote from someone who does this for a living, and a strategy for how to ask for it in your offer.
These are the people I actually send my buyers to. Either one will run your real numbers, tell you what a buy-down costs on your specific loan, and won't waste your time. Tell them Kasey sent you.
These are recommendations, not requirements — you're free to shop and use any lender you choose, and I receive no compensation for referring you. Ashley and Jake are licensed mortgage professionals; Kasey Ingram and Equity Solutions Realty are not a mortgage lender and cannot quote rates or approve loans.
Please read this part. This tool is for education and rough planning only. It is not a loan estimate, a pre-approval, a commitment to lend, or an advertisement of terms. Kasey Ingram and Equity Solutions Realty are real estate licensees, not a mortgage lender, and do not quote rates or originate loans.
The estimates assume a fixed-rate, fully amortizing loan and a simple rule of thumb for how much a point lowers your rate. Actual pricing changes daily and depends on your credit, loan amount, program, occupancy, property type, lock period, and lender. Property tax, insurance, HOA, and mortgage insurance figures here are placeholders, not quotes. Temporary buy-downs require a written agreement and are subject to program limits and interested-party contribution caps.
For actual terms, talk to a licensed mortgage loan originator. Equal Housing Opportunity.