Mortgage Recast Calculator

A recast (or re-amortization) is when you pay a lump sum toward your mortgage principal and your lender recalculates the monthly payment over the time you have left. Your interest rate and payoff date stay the same; only the payment goes down.

It depends on the lump sum, your rate and the years left. With $300,000 owed at 6.5% and 25 years left, a $50,000 lump sum lowers the principal and interest payment from $2,025.62 to $1,688.02, which is $337.60 a month less.

If you keep paying the same amount after the lump sum, you pay off the loan sooner and save more interest. In the example above, that saves $143,646 and finishes about 7.9 years early, compared with $51,281 for the recast. A recast makes sense when a lower required payment matters more to you, for example to free up monthly cash flow.

Lenders typically charge a one-time fee of about $150 to $500 and often require a minimum lump sum, commonly $5,000 or $10,000. Check with your loan servicer for its rules.

Most conventional loans can be recast, subject to the lender's rules. Government-backed loans such as FHA, VA and USDA loans generally can't. Jumbo loans depend on the lender.

A refinance replaces your loan with a new one, often at a different rate and term, and usually costs 2% to 6% of the loan in closing costs. A recast keeps your existing loan and rate, costs a small fee and doesn't need a credit check or appraisal. If rates have dropped a lot since you borrowed, a refinance may save more.

Often after selling a previous home once they've bought the new one, or after an inheritance or bonus. It lets you lower the payment without taking on a new loan.

No. A recast only changes the principal and interest part of your payment, so that's what this calculator shows. Property tax, homeowners insurance and any PMI are billed separately and don't change. To see your full payment, use the mortgage calculator.

No. Everything is calculated in your browser and nothing is saved or uploaded.