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July 8, 2005
Mortgage Calculator
A few days ago I went on the internet to find a mortgage calculator. After inputting my information if gave me the total cost. I then went to another website and tried a different mortgage calculator. I used all of the same information, but I was given a different result. This difference piqued my curiosity, so I tried yet another mortgage calculator. Again, I was given a new total. Needless to say, the continued variation that I found has made me question the validity of using an online mortgage calculator. Since I am not actually buying a home, I will not have the chance to meet with my bank and discover the true cost, answering the question of which mortgage calculator was actually accurate. Had the results I received been fairly close, even within a few thousands dollars I would not have any problems with using a mortgage calculator. However, some of the total costs I was given were over $10,000 apart. For a relatively small house, that is a significant difference.
I do tend to believe that my experience using an online mortgage calculator is not the norm. People that I know that have used one have never had this same problem, although that does not offer me much comfort in the wake of my experience. Perhaps, I choose the few bad apples that exist in a pile of generally accurate mortgage calculators. Perhaps, I entered my information incorrectly (although I doubt I did that with every single mortgage calculator). The use of a mortgage calculator on the internet can be a great and convenient tool. However, based on my recent experience I would suggest double checking your results with your bank or real estate agent, just to be sure.
Posted by ben at July 8, 2005 9:56 AM