When Is My First Mortgage Payment Due?
Knowing when your first mortgage payment is due is essential. After all, you want to protect your good credit score, so you want to be sure to pay in full and on time. Plus, there are often additional expenses that you need to juggle as you work to settle into a new home.
If you haven’t already gone to closing, you can use your understanding of the relationship between closing and the date of your first mortgage payment to impact your closing costs and determine how much time you have before you have to make that first payment.
Determining When Your First Mortgage Payment Is Due
You’re asking the question: When is my first mortgage payment due? As Smart Asset explains, the answer isn’t that hard to figure out. It’s based on your closing date. To determine the date your first mortgage payment will be due, take the following steps:
- Identify your closing date.
- Count forward 30 days beyond your closing date.
- Continue until you reach the first day of a month.
- Pinpoint this as the date that your first mortgage payment is due.
Imagine that you close on September 15. Counting ahead 30 days will take you to October 15. Home loan payments are due at the beginning of the month, so your first payment will come due on November 1.
Discovering the Links Between Closing and Your First Payment
Once you recognize the link between closing and the date that your first mortgage payment is due, it’s worth asking how you can use that information to your advantage. However, you’ll want to weigh the impact on your closing costs versus the benefit that you’ll gain in time until your first mortgage payment is due. Time explains:
- Closing at the beginning of the month: Closing at the start of the month means that you’ll have almost two full months until your first mortgage payment is due. That gives you extra time to come up with a mortgage payment and allows you to use your resources for other things. However, mortgage interest is paid in arrears. As a result, closing early in the month means that you’ll pay more mortgage interest as part of your closing costs.
- Closing at the end of the month: If you close at the end of the month, you’ll have less time to prepare for your first mortgage payment. It will be due in about a month. However, you’ll pay less in mortgage interest as part of your closing costs.
- Closing in the middle of the month: Going to closing in the middle lets you split the difference. You’ll have about six weeks until your mortgage payment is due, so you have a little extra time. In a similar fashion, your upfront costs are in the middle because you’ll have less mortgage interest to pay as part of your closing costs.
Understanding When Your Mortgage Payment Is Late
As The Ascent indicates, your home loan payment is generally due on the first day of the month. However, many lenders offer a grace period before they consider a payment to be truly late. Lenders often accept payments until the 10th or 15th day of the month before marking them as late and charging the relevant fees. It’s smart to review your agreement so that you are aware of your lender’s policies. Remember that these grace periods are intended to provide leeway for issues with mailing or other mishaps. Routinely relying on them is likely to result in late charges and damage to your credit.
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Do you have questions about how mortgages work? Are you searching for the right home loan product for your situation? PrimeLending West Texas can help. Contact us today to discuss your housing goals.