When it comes to a large purchase such as a car or a home, one of the most complicated things to wrap your head around is the financial commitment that’s involved. There are so many concepts to understand and financial products to compare that it can get extremely convoluted at times.

Fortunately, there are a few ways to simplify things such as working with financial advisors and asking friends and family members for assistance.

But when it comes to your mortgage, how do you know if lenders are being transparent with you? There are so many factors to consider and dozens of financial products that can help you save money. But if you’re not well-versed in how these products work, you might be losing out on a lot of money. So in this post, we’re going to give you a very brief introduction to how you can save more money on your mortgage.

Credit Rating Can Affect Your Mortgage and Future Payments

Credit rating is a measurement that banks and lenders use to determine if you’re eligible to borrow money. If your credit rating is low, then they’ll charge higher interest rates because they don’t have faith in your ability to pay back the full amount. However, if your credit rating is good, they’ll offer you a lower interest rate because they trust that you can manage your money correctly. This actually affects mortgages as well; with a better credit score, you’ll end up paying less money for your house overall.

But what if your credit rating changes?

If your rating has improved since you took out your mortgage, then you could unlock lower interest rates. With help from services like Gem Home Loans, you could refinance your home and unlock not just lower interest rates, but also shorter loan terms so that you can pay off your home faster. This can be a great way to save money on your mortgage in the long run and is an option you should consider if you’ve been steadily improving your credit rating.

Extra Payments Can Help You Pay Off Your Mortgage Faster

Extra payments shouldn’t be underestimated when it comes to saving money on your mortgage. The big thing that you need to overcome is paying off the interest that comes with the loan. If you let this accumulate, then your final payment amount is going to be considerably higher than the initial loan amount. By making regular extra payments, you could potentially shave off several years worth of interest from your loan.

But should you make early payments if your financial situation isn’t great? We’d always recommend that you contribute as much as you can to pay off your mortgage early in order to avoid interest accumulating, but if you’re not in a great financial situation and can’t afford to do this then it’s not something you should worry about. While every little payment helps, you ultimately need to make enough extra payments so that you avoid an additional month of interest.