🏡 Down Payment Calculator

What This Calculator Does

This calculator translates a down payment percentage into real numbers. Enter the home price and the percentage you are considering, and it shows the cash the down payment requires, the loan amount that remains, and how the figure compares to the 20% mark where PMI disappears. It turns “we should put more down” conversations into dollar figures you can actually plan against.

The down payment is the biggest check most people ever write, and small percentage differences hide large cash differences — the gap between 10% and 20% on a median home is tens of thousands of dollars. Seeing the numbers side by side is where a real decision starts.

The Math and the 20% Line

The arithmetic is one multiplication with big consequences: down payment = price × percentage, and loan = price − down payment. On a $400,000 home, 5% is $20,000 (loan $380,000), 10% is $40,000, 20% is $80,000 (loan $320,000). Every dollar of down payment is a dollar not borrowed — shrinking the loan, the monthly payment, and the lifetime interest that payment carries across 30 years.

The 20% threshold matters because of PMI — private mortgage insurance, which conventional lenders require below 20% down. PMI typically costs about 0.3-1.5% of the loan annually (credit score and down payment size set the rate): on a $380,000 loan, plausibly $95-475 per month, protecting the lender against default while you pay for it. It is not permanent — it cancels around 20-22% equity by payment, appreciation, or request — but until then it is pure cost, which is why the 20% line features in every down payment conversation and this calculator marks your distance from it.

Low-Down Options, Honestly Weighed

Modern lending offers real paths below 20%: conventional loans at 3-5% down, FHA at 3.5% (with its own mortgage insurance rules, which unlike PMI can persist for the loan's life at low down payments), and VA and USDA loans at 0% for eligible veterans and rural buyers. These exist because 20% of today's prices is out of reach for many first buyers — and the honest analysis is not “low-down bad,” but a comparison of costs: PMI and higher interest paid versus years of rent and price appreciation missed while saving.

In fast-appreciating markets, buying sooner at 5-10% down has often beaten waiting to accumulate 20%; in flat markets, the calculus reverses. Two cautions keep the choice sound: never drain reserves to zero for the down payment (homes generate repair bills immediately, and an empty account plus a broken furnace is how new owners meet credit-card debt), and stress-test the monthly payment with PMI included, not the brochure figure. The calculator gives each scenario's cash and loan numbers; running it at 5%, 10%, and 20% side by side is the five-minute version of the whole decision. This is general information, not financial advice — a lender's Loan Estimate prices your specific situation.

The Full Cash Picture at Closing

The down payment is the headline but not the whole check. Closing costs add 2-5% of the price — origination and underwriting fees, appraisal, title insurance, escrow deposits, and prepaid property taxes and homeowners insurance — meaning a $400,000 purchase at 10% down realistically requires $48,000-60,000 of cash before moving trucks and immediate furnishings. Sellers sometimes credit toward closing costs in slower markets; lenders can roll some costs into the rate. Both are negotiations the cash-aware buyer knows to raise.

Beyond closing, the prudent floor is an untouched emergency reserve — several months of the new, full housing payment — because ownership converts landlord problems into owner invoices on day one. Down payment assistance programs (state and local grants, first-time-buyer programs, employer benefits) are worth a search in your area; they are chronically under-used simply because buyers do not know they exist. Assemble the true number — down payment plus closing plus reserve — and the house hunt starts with a budget that survives contact with reality, which is the entire point of running the math first.

Quick Tips

• Down payment = price × %; every dollar down is a dollar not borrowed for 30 years.
• Below 20% on conventional loans adds PMI (~0.3-1.5% of the loan yearly) until ~20-22% equity.
• Budget closing costs too: 2-5% of the price on top of the down payment.
• Never zero out reserves — repairs start immediately. Model 5/10/20% side by side.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much is a down payment on a house?

The percentage times the price: 20% of a $400,000 home is $80,000, leaving a $320,000 loan. Conventional loans commonly allow as little as 3-5% down, FHA 3.5%, and VA/USDA can reach 0% for eligible buyers.

Why does 20% down matter?

At 20% or more on a conventional loan, lenders drop private mortgage insurance (PMI) — a monthly charge of roughly 0.3-1.5% of the loan per year that protects the lender, not you. Below 20%, PMI applies until you reach about 20-22% equity.

Is it always better to put 20% down?

Not automatically. Waiting years to save 20% can cost more in rising prices and rent than PMI would, and draining every reserve for the down payment leaves no cushion for repairs. The honest answer depends on your market, timeline, and savings — worth modeling both ways.

What other cash do I need beyond the down payment?

Closing costs, typically 2-5% of the price — loan fees, title, escrow, prepaid taxes and insurance — plus moving costs and an emergency reserve. A $400,000 purchase at 10% down realistically needs $48,000-60,000+ of cash, not just the $40,000.

Clear Numbers, Not Financial Advice

This calculator runs entirely in your browser, turning percentages into cash and loan figures instantly — general information to plan with, not financial advice; a lender's Loan Estimate prices your specifics. It needs no account or download. Like every tool here, it is free to use as often as you like.

Related Tools

For the rest of the purchase math, the mortgage calculator turns the loan into monthly payments, the percentage calculator handles the closing-cost estimates, and the compound interest calculator shows what the saved reserve earns.