California Mortgage Calculator

Use this free mortgage calculator to estimate your monthly mortgage payments and annual amortization.

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2024

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Your loan estimate
Total monthly payment

$0.00

Total principal$0

Total interest payments$0.00

Total loan payments$0.00

Monthly mortgage payment$0.00

Payoff date- / -

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Taking out a mortgage in California

Written by NerdWallet

In California, The Golden State, housing affordability is deemed a "crisis" by many. On average, Californians spend the largest percentage (25%) of their incomes on housing of any state in the U.S. When looking at housing trends in California, it's important to keep in mind that local housing trends may be different than overall statewide trends because the state is so large (if California were a country, it would have the 5th largest economy in the world!). California overall and its largest metro areas (Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area) have seen a continued rise in housing prices in recent years.

California's first-time home buyer programs

The California Housing Finance Agency, or CalHFA, offers several loan programs to help qualified first-time home buyers get a mortgage. Learn more

Average property tax by county

Taking U.S. Census data, NerdWallet has crunched the numbers to help you understand what property tax rate you can expect to pay on your future home in California. Because assessed values aren’t frequently updated, you may pay a higher rate at first but eventually you’ll pay a similar rate.
CountyAvg. property tax rateMedian home value
Alameda County0.75%$1,092,500
Alpine County0.63%$463,900
Amador County0.61%$409,600
Butte County0.71%$412,700
Calaveras County0.74%$404,200
Colusa County0.62%$360,100
Contra Costa County0.79%$865,800
Del Norte County0.65%$282,500
El Dorado County0.74%$654,000
Fresno County0.79%$382,500
Glenn County0.66%$295,400
Humboldt County0.63%$429,500
Imperial County0.85%$293,200
Inyo County0.64%$325,900
Kern County0.95%$330,000
Kings County0.77%$299,400
Lake County0.66%$300,200
Lassen County0.75%$233,100
Los Angeles County0.67%$805,600
Madera County0.7%$396,100
Marin County0.75%$1,466,500
Mariposa County0.62%$335,900
Mendocino County0.61%$483,400
Merced County0.67%$388,300
Modoc County0.64%$184,900
Mono County0.75%$496,800
Monterey County0.63%$732,500
Napa County0.62%$866,300
Nevada County0.73%$633,300
Orange County0.67%$940,900
Placer County0.83%$682,000
Plumas County0.67%$310,100
Riverside County0.89%$555,400
Sacramento County0.78%$536,600
San Benito County0.8%$801,200
San Bernardino County0.77%$504,400
San Diego County0.7%$846,600
San Francisco County0.64%$1,343,700
San Joaquin County0.79%$535,800
San Luis Obispo County0.66%$776,400
San Mateo County0.58%$1,586,500
Santa Barbara County0.59%$744,700
Santa Clara County0.65%$1,475,500
Santa Cruz County0.63%$1,013,900
Shasta County0.71%$355,100
Sierra County0.69%$289,400
Siskiyou County0.64%$260,200
Solano County0.79%$605,300
Sonoma County0.66%$771,000
Stanislaus County0.74%$450,700
Sutter County0.77%$433,100
Tehama County0.66%$342,100
Trinity County0.32%$326,200
Tulare County0.73%$320,500
Tuolumne County0.6%$377,700
Ventura County0.7%$796,300
Yolo County0.79%$591,800
Yuba County0.8%$430,400
Source: American Communities Survey 2022, U.S. Census

How to use the mortgage calculator

  1. Under "Loan amount," enter the amount you intend to borrow.

  2. Under "Interest rate," enter the mortgage interest rate that you expect to get.

  3. Under "Loan term (years)," enter the length of the mortgage in years. Most mortgages have 30-year terms.

After you enter these three pieces of information, the calculator prominently displays the monthly payment inside the "Your loan estimate" window. It also displays:

  • The loan amount (under "Total principal").

  • How much interest you would pay over the life of the loan ("Total interest payments").

  • The total principal plus interest you would pay over the loan's term ("Total loan payments").

  • The monthly principal and interest payment excluding taxes and insurance ("Monthly mortgage payment").

  • The payoff date, which is the month when you would pay the last scheduled payment.

Calculating costs in addition to principal and interest

The calculator lets you fine-tune your payment by entering your annual property tax premium, annual home insurance premium, monthly homeowner association fee and monthly cost of mortgage insurance. Note that you'll enter the annual cost for property tax and home insurance, and the monthly cost for HOA fees and mortgage insurance.

Select "Show amortization schedule" to uncover a table that shows how much you'll pay in principal and interest each month, as well as the remaining amount you owe ("Principal balance") after making the payment.

Explanation of terminology

  • Loan amount: Also known as principal, this is the amount you borrow. Each mortgage payment reduces the principal you owe.

  • Interest rate: How much the lender charges you to lend you the money. Interest rates are expressed as an annual percentage. A lower interest rate gives you a smaller monthly payment.

  • Loan term (years): The term is the number of years it will take to pay off the mortgage. A longer term gives you a lower monthly payment than a shorter term does. But you pay more total interest with a longer term because you're paying interest for more months.

  • Start date: The month that your first mortgage payment is due.

  • Property taxes: The annual tax assessed by a government authority on your home and land. You pay about one-twelfth of your annual tax bill with each mortgage payment, and the servicer saves them in an escrow account. When the taxes are due, the loan servicer pays them.

  • Homeowners insurance: Your policy covers damage and financial losses from fire, storms, theft, a tree falling on your house and other bad things. As with property taxes, you pay roughly one-twelfth of your annual premium each month, and the servicer pays the bill when it's due.

  • Monthly HOA fees: The amount you may pay each month if you belong to a homeowners association. Typically, these dues are billed directly, not added to the monthly mortgage payment. Because HOA dues can be easy to forget when considering the cost of homeownership, NerdWallet's mortgage calculator allows you to enter them here.

  • Private mortgage insurance: If your down payment is less than 20% of the home’s purchase price, you’ll likely pay mortgage insurance. It protects the lender in case a borrower defaults on a mortgage.

Using the mortgage calculator to compare scenarios

This mortgage calculator lets you change the loan amount, interest rate, loan term and other factors so you can see the effect on monthly payments.

Feel free to test it out by entering your loan amount, then altering the interest rate or the loan term (or both). You won't break anything!

If you're looking to see how much you could save by refinancing your mortgage, try NerdWallet's refinance calculator.

» MORE FOR CANADIAN READERS: Canada mortgage payment calculator

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