Your mortgage + your credit cards

Two ways out of this

What you’re really paying now, next to what one loan would look like — side by side. About a dozen taps, nothing to look up.

Everything here is an illustration to help you compare, not an offer of credit.

Is this the loan you used to buy the home?

Or have you refinanced since? It changes which date — and which costs — we use.

When did you take it out?

If you've refinanced since buying, use the refinance date.

How long was the loan?

The original length, not what's left.

How much did you borrow?

The original loan amount — we'll work out what's left.

What's your interest rate?

What's the home worth now?

Your best guess is fine.

Do you pay mortgage insurance?

It shows up as PMI or MIP. It's the one thing we can't work out on our own.

Roughly how much a month?

Skip it if you'd rather — we'll estimate.

What kind of loan is it?

FHA insurance never cancels. Conventional falls away on its own. It changes the answer.

Roughly what did you put down when you bought?

What you put down sets what the insurance costs today. A guess is fine.

How much do you owe on credit cards?

All of them together.

Roughly what rate are the cards?

What do you send the cards each month?

All of them together. Leave it at zero and we'll use the minimums.

Compared to a year ago, are the cards higher or about the same?

Just roughly — it tells us whether the balance is really coming down.