I post first time homebuyer tips like this on r/NewbHomebuyer if you're looking for more.

This is copied from a post I did last month, but scaled down to a $415k purchase price rather than a $500k purchase price.

I think online calculators do a pretty good job giving you an idea of a ballpark number.
But here are all of the mechanics of what goes into your mortgage payment, and how to figure it out on your own.

Your mortgage loan has several parts to the payment:

Principal and Interest (often referred to as P/I)
Property Taxes
Homeowners insurance
Mortgage insurance
Down payment assistance payment (if utilizing)

Determine loan amount (how much are you putting down)

As a first time buyer, two common choices you could go with for a minimum down payment are:

3% Conventional Mortgage
3.5% FHA Mortgage

On a Conventional Mortgage
3% down on $415,000 = $12,450
Loan amount = $402,550

On an FHA Mortgage
3.5% down on $415,000 = $14,525
Base loan amount = $400,475

You’d think the loan amount would be $400,475 right?

Well let me introduce you to UFMIP.

It’s a fee that gets tacked onto the loan balance.
It’s 1.75% of the base loan amount.

$400,475 × 1.75% = $7,008

$400,475 + $7,008 = $407,483

So that is your loan balance on an FHA loan.

What are rates at?

Use Mortgage News Daily’s site to find the average rates without buydown points.
https://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/

Conventional mortgage rates on 11/26/25 are at 6.22% on 30 years
FHA rates for the same date are at 5.85% on 30 years

Principal and interest

Now that we know the interest rate, the loan amount, and the term, we can plug that into a loan calculator.

Conventional = ~$2,470
FHA = ~$2,404

Property taxes

Property taxes will vary from property to property.
The lender wants to make sure you pay it, so they include it in the mortgage payment.

This is part of your escrow payment.

You can usually find the property tax bill on Zillow just below the price history chart.
Take the annual tax bill and divide it by 12.

Just remember Zillow can be wrong.
The previous owner may have exemptions you won’t get.

Below are state averages for a $415k home.

State Annual Monthly
AK $4,358 $363
AL $2,158 $180
AR $2,656 $221
AZ $2,117 $176
CA $3,320 $277
CO $2,407 $201
CT $7,221 $602
DE $2,615 $218
FL $3,984 $332
GA $3,818 $318
HI $1,702 $142
IA $6,018 $501
ID $2,241 $187
IL $8,217 $685
IN $3,984 $332
KS $5,644 $470
KY $3,569 $297
LA $2,988 $249
MA $4,482 $374
MD $3,777 $315
ME $3,818 $318
MI $5,146 $429
MN $4,482 $374
MO $3,943 $329
MS $2,988 $249
MT $3,943 $329
NC $2,905 $242
ND $4,524 $377
NE $6,474 $540
NH $5,603 $467
NJ $7,221 $602
NM $2,988 $249
NV $2,407 $201
NY $6,474 $540
OH $6,516 $543
OK $4,524 $377
OR $3,860 $322
PA $5,935 $495
RI $4,607 $384
SC $3,113 $259
SD $4,607 $384
TN $2,241 $187
TX $5,395 $450
UT $2,698 $225
VA $3,569 $297
VT $5,769 $481
WA $3,735 $311
WI $5,063 $422
WV $2,449 $204
WY $2,615 $218

Let’s pretend we’re in California with $276 per month in property taxes.

Homeowners insurance

Homeowners insurance varies by state and property.
Lenders escrow this to protect against hazards like fire.

Below are HOI estimates for a $415k home.

State Annual Monthly
AK $1,577 $131
AL $2,490 $208
AR $2,988 $249
AZ $2,075 $173
CA $1,453 $121
CO $2,490 $208
CT $1,826 $152
DE $1,577 $131
FL $4,150 $346
GA $3,113 $259
HI $1,038 $86
IA $1,951 $163
ID $1,702 $142
IL $2,158 $180
IN $2,034 $169
KS $3,279 $273
KY $2,615 $218
LA $6,640 $553
MA $2,158 $180
MD $1,743 $145
ME $1,619 $135
MI $2,532 $211
MN $2,366 $197
MO $2,988 $249
MS $3,694 $308
MT $2,324 $194
NC $2,781 $232
ND $2,034 $169
NE $2,781 $232
NH $1,453 $121
NJ $2,034 $169
NM $2,532 $211
NV $1,951 $163
NY $1,992 $166
OH $1,992 $166
OK $5,893 $491
OR $1,619 $135
PA $1,868 $156
RI $2,490 $208
SC $3,486 $291
SD $2,158 $180
TN $3,030 $252
TX $6,640 $553
UT $1,702 $142
VA $1,826 $152
VT $1,577 $131
WA $1,577 $131
WI $1,785 $149
WV $2,158 $180
WY $2,283 $190

So far for California:

Conventional:

  • $2,470 P/I
  • $276 Property tax
  • $121 HOI

FHA:

  • $2,404 P/I
  • $276 Property tax
  • $121 HOI

Mortgage insurance

Mortgage insurance protects the lender if you default.

FHA has a flat 0.55% annual MI factor with minimum down.

Conventional varies, but we’ll use 0.25%.

Conventional:
$402,550 × 0.0025 ÷ 12 = $83.86

FHA:
$407,483 × 0.0055 ÷ 12 = $186.70

Running total (California example)

Conventional:

  • $2,470 P/I
  • $276 Property tax
  • $121 HOI
  • $83.86 MI = $2,950.86

FHA:

  • $2,404 P/I
  • $276 Property tax
  • $121 HOI
  • $186.70 MI = $2,987.7

HOA

HOA dues are owed separately from your mortgage.
Underwriting still counts them toward your housing expense.

Always check the listing.

Down payment assistance payment

If you use down payment assistance, it may be a second mortgage with interest.

Example:

$15,000
10-year term
7.2% interest

Monthly payment = $175.71

Estimates on a mortgage payment for all 50 states

$415,000 purchase price (Conventional, no HOA, no DPA)

State Total Est Payment
AK $3,048
AL $2,941
AR $3,024
AZ $2,903
CA $2,952
CO $2,962
CT $3,308
DE $2,903
FL $3,232
GA $3,131
HI $2,782
IA $3,218
ID $2,882
IL $3,418
IN $3,055
KS $3,297
KY $3,069
LA $3,356
MA $3,107
MD $3,014
ME $3,007
MI $3,194
MN $3,124
MO $3,131
MS $3,111
MT $3,076
NC $3,028
ND $3,100
NE $3,325
NH $3,142
NJ $3,325
NM $3,014
NV $2,917
NY $3,259
OH $3,263
OK $3,422
OR $3,010
PA $3,204
RI $3,145
SC $3,104
SD $3,118
TN $2,993
TX $3,557
UT $2,920
VA $3,003
VT $3,166
WA $2,997
WI $3,124
WV $2,938
WY $2,962

I hope this helps.

There's a calculator here (Reddit App) that helps walk you through each step to help you find out what the mortgage payment could look like with different purchase prices.

Drop more questions if you need.
Sam

I post first time homebuyer tips like this on r/NewbHomebuyer if you're looking for more.

Originally shared by u/SamTMortgageBroker in r/NewbHomebuyer — view the original thread.