Mortgage loans provide the means for the majority of people to purchase a home. While those of us who need a mortgage loan appreciate its usefulness, we also want to pay as little as possible for it. One of the ways to save money on your mortgage loan is to pay it off early. Here are a few steps you can consider if you want to pay off your mortgage early.

Bi-Weekly Mortgage Loans Provide Early Mortgage Payoff

When you make a monthly mortgage loan payment, a portion of the payment goes toward paying interest on the outstanding loan balance, and the remainder of the payment goes toward paying down the loan balance. With a bi-weekly mortgage you make loan payments every two weeks, which pays off the loan balance faster, resulting in less interest being charged over the life of the loan.

15 Year Mortgage Loans Provide Early Mortgage Payoff

The majority of mortgage loans are paid off over a period of 30 years. If you choose a 15 year mortgage loan instead, the loan is paid off in one-half of the time. The monthly loan payment will be higher than on a 30 year loan, so you would need to allocate more of your monthly household budget to paying the mortgage loan. Interest rates on 15 year loans are also typically lower than 30 year loans, so you save even more on interest costs.

Making Extra Mortgage Payments Speeds up Mortgage Payoff

You can also speed up the payoff of standard, 30-year mortgage loan. All you have to do is send the mortgage lender extra money with your monthly loan payment, with instructions that the extra money is to be paid toward the outstanding balance of the loan. One of the advantages of this strategy is that you are not obligated to make the extra payment if your budget gets too tight on a particular month.