Mortgage Calculator: What It Takes to Purchase a $430K Home at a 7.24% Rate

Mortgage rates kept edging lower this week, with the average rate on 30-year fixed home loans falling to 7.24% for the week ending Oct. 29, according to Freddie Mac. That was down 8 basis points from 7.32% the week before.

The back-to-back weekly drops offer some relief for buyers after the sharp climb seen earlier this fall.

But borrowing costs are still well above where they were a year ago, when rates averaged 6.17% over the same stretch in 2025.

What does that mean in practical terms? Using the Realtor.com® mortgage calculator, here is how the numbers work out for the median-priced home in the U.S.

All examples assume a 30-year fixed mortgage and include only principal and interest, not property taxes, homeowners insurance, or mortgage insurance.

Monthly mortgage payment with a 20% down payment

For a buyer targeting the median home price of $430,000, a 20% down payment leaves a loan amount of $344,000.

At a 7.24% rate, the estimated monthly principal and interest payment is about $2,344.

That is $19 less than the previous week's payment of $2,363.

Compared with the 6.17% average from 2025, when the monthly payment on a home at this price was $2,100, today's buyers are paying $244 more each month.

Monthly mortgage payment with a 3.5% down payment

Costs have also climbed sharply for buyers using FHA loans with a 3.5% down payment.

On a $430,000 home, an FHA borrower would finance roughly $414,950. At 7.24%, the monthly principal and interest payment comes to about $2,828.

That is $22 below last week's estimate of $2,850. Still, compared with the 6.17% rate environment in 2025, when the payment on that loan amount was $2,533, FHA borrowers are paying an extra $295 a month in interest.

Even so, the current payment is still below the October 2023 peak of 7.79%, when the monthly cost on a home at this price reached $2,984. That means today's payment is $156 lower.

Long-term savings over 30 years

The longer-term outlook shows how even a modest rate decline can affect overall borrowing costs across a 30-year loan.

A buyer making a 20% down payment at 7.24% would pay a total of $843,967 in principal and interest over the life of the mortgage. Although that is still higher than the baseline from 2025, it remains well below the October 2023 peak of 7.79%, when the same $344,000 loan would have cost $890,630.

Choosing the lower rate instead of that peak would save a homebuyer $46,663 in interest over 30 years.

FHA borrowers would see a similar pattern. Financing the current median-priced home at 7.24% results in a total principal-and-interest cost of $1,018,036 over the life of the loan.

If that same mortgage had been locked in at the 7.79% peak in late 2023, the total would have risen to $1,074,323. That translates into long-term savings of $56,287 for FHA buyers.

Although rates remain higher than they were a year ago and continue to strain household budgets, the recent string of weekly declines is helping steady monthly payments for buyers in the late-fall housing market.