$250,000 Mortgage Payment

What a $250,000 mortgage actually costs

Put 20% down — $50,000 — on a $250,000 home and you finance $200,000. At 6.55%, the average 30-year fixed rate as of 2026-07-16, that loan carries a principal-and-interest payment of $1,271/mo. Property taxes, homeowners insurance, and any HOA dues come on top; with a typical 1.1% tax rate and $1,800/yr insurance, the full payment lands near $1,650/mo.

Early in the loan, most of that payment is interest. In month one, roughly $1,092 of the $1,271 payment covers interest and only about $179 pays down the balance. The payment never changes on a fixed-rate loan, but the split shifts steadily toward principal — the chart above shows exactly when the crossover happens for this loan.

The term is the biggest lever on total cost. Over 30 years, a $200,000 loan at 6.55% costs about $257,459 in interest. Compress it to 15 years and the payment rises to $1,748/mo, but lifetime interest drops to $114,589 — a saving of $142,870 at this price.

Can you afford it? The common 28% front-end rule says your full housing payment should stay at or under 28% of gross income. At $1,650/mo, that implies a household income of about $70,709 per year for a $250,000 home with 20% down.

Payment by down payment and term

Principal + interest only, at the current 6.55% average rate — taxes and insurance vary by state, so they're excluded here. Under 20% down, expect PMI on top (the calculator above includes it).

Common questions