When might an I-O mortgage payment or a payment-option ARM not make sense?
Interest-only or option-ARM minimum payments may be risky if you won’t be able to afford the higher monthly payments in the future. For example, suppose you are in the market for a home and can afford a monthly payment of about $1,100. Depending on the interest rate, with a traditional 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage, you might expect to get a $180,000 mortgage. A lender or broker could offer you an I-O mortgage payment of $1,100 monthly that might enable you to get a $215,000 mortgage–and, therefore, a more expensive house. But keep in mind that your payments could go up because of interest rate increases when the I-O period ends, or when the loan is recalculated. Your $1,100 monthly payment could jump to $1,340 or more. If you cannot reasonably expect to make this larger payment when the time comes, you might want to think about a different type of loan.
Related Questions
- If the existing mortgage is an Initial InterestSM Mortgage or an ARM, what monthly mortgage payment must I use to determine the new principal and interest payment for the Relief Refinance Mortgage?
- When might an I-O mortgage payment or a payment-option ARM not make sense?
- How much is a Florida Custom Homes home and the monthly mortgage payment?
