Is that going to be wrapped into your mortgage?вЂќ So, you are probably looking closer to $40,000. But closing costs will be quite a bit more. вЂњIf you are purchasing a $260,000 house, I presume you will put 10% down ($26,000). вЂњHome ownership costs are always more than expected,вЂќ he adds. He warns that your mortgage interest rate could also exceed 5% if you have a low credit score. Waltzer is more circumspect on the benefits of home ownership than I am.

If allowed, you can increase your monthly payments or make larger annual lump-sum payments directly to the mortgage company.вЂќ вЂњA principal-only payment would help save on interest and allow you to pay off your mortgage early. вЂњIf the goal is to pay down the mortgage faster, ask your mortgage lender if youвЂ™re able to make additional principal-only payments and if there are any pre-payment penalties,вЂќ says J ennifer Weber, vice-president, financial planning at Weber Asset Management. For those who can afford to pay extra, both are a good idea as long as you ensure you have necessities such as an emergency fund. If your mortgage servicer allows it, paying off a regular amount on your mortgage - given that you are simultaneously paying off interest - can be more effective than an annual lump sum. You donвЂ™t have to pay this loan off in seven years, and you donвЂ™t need to rack up extra debt. With inflation and, hopefully, a higher salary, you may also find that your mortgage payments become manageable.

LetвЂ™s say you work for another 15 to 20 years: You will not only have gained that equity in your home with your monthly mortgage payments, but your home will also presumably - or very likely - have risen in value over that time, giving you more options should you wish to cash out and move to a smaller home. Many of them were for people who tried to do what you are describing.вЂќ вЂњI have filed tens of thousands of bankruptcies in New York and New Jersey. But what happens when that new low-interest offer never arrives? Now you are unable to make credit-card payments - and you will struggle with the mortgage as well,вЂќ Waltzer adds. вЂњYou plan to transfer a low-balance debt to another low-balance card. вЂњWhat happens when you are late with just one payment, and that zero-interest rate jumps up to 18%?В What happens when you have another rough period and canвЂ™t pay off the card on time? Even if you make all the payments perfectly on time, these credit-card companies do a regular review of your credit.вЂќД¬redit-card companies also have a lot of small print. вЂњDangerous Curves Ahead!вЂќ says David Waltzer, a New York-based bankruptcy lawyer. IвЂ™m not the only one to sound warning bells. When you apply for a loan, the bank will also conduct a forensic examination of your finances before agreeing to a mortgage. The down payment is a vote of confidence in that, and should come from your savings rather than your credit card. Your financial institution wants to know that your credit and bank account is healthy. In practice, your bank in all likelihood (I can say with 99.999% certainty) wonвЂ™t accept a credit-card payment as a down payment. If you fall behind on the latter, you will likely face hefty repayments when that 0% interest ends. But in this case, you are both Peter and Paul.В IвЂ™m sorry to get all Dostoevsky on you, but you need to tread carefully, as you risk committing yourself to both a mortgage and a loan. Would-be Home Buyer Dear Would-be Home Buyer,ДЇirst, letвЂ™s talk about your plan in principle: By taking out a 0% loan on your credit-union credit card for your downpayment, you are robbing Peter to pay Paul. But paying $25,000 once a year may be a little faster. If I pay an extra $2,500 a month, I can pay it off in about seven years. Here are my figures: a $260,000 mortgage over 30 years with monthly payments of $1,390 a month. Just wanted to know your thoughts on this matter. I believe it would be a little better with making a large up-front payment. My calculations for paying a weekly principal payment means the house could be paid off in less than seven years. If I do it this way, I can pay off the card during the year, and save a lot of interest on the mortgage. It is a very high credit limit, and I was thinking of taking that and putting it on the mortgage as a way of paying off the mortgage sooner, rather than making extra payments every month to the mortgage company.

My credit-union credit card allows me to make a balance transfer at 0% financing with no fee once a year.

30 year mortgage should i pay it down