Congratulations! You bought a house!
You might be thinking – “So…when do I start paying for this thing?” Well, unlike paying rent, where you go ahead and make your first payment for the month ahead – you know, move in on June 1st and have already paid for the month of June (and maybe even the last month’s rent, too, plus security deposit – all in one lump sum right off the bat – but I digress), your first mortgage payment isn’t made until one month after the last day of the month you closed on your home.
Okay, that sounded confusing. Let’s break it down.
Easily put – If you close on your home on June 15th, your first payment won’t be due until August 1st. So, you finish the month in which you buy the home – June 15th to June 30th – and then you’ll start your first full month – the month of July – where you don’t have to make a payment, and make your first payment on August 1st.
The earlier in the month you close, the longer you have before your first payment is due.
Important to note, however, that it’s not really skipping payments or “free” months. You’re still charged interest during that time. In our June 15th example, the closing costs on your home would include prorated interest charges for the June 15th to June 30th period, and your August 1st payment would include interest for the month of July.
So, if you want to pay less prorated interest at closing, you’ll want to close closer to the end of the month. If you don’t mind paying a bit more in closing in order to have more time without a mortgage payment, close at the beginning of the month.
If you have any questions at all, give your Homespire Loan Officer a call. We can break it down into more detail for you.
Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel so you don’t miss out on future mortgage wisdom.