How To Pay Your Mortgage Easily

According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, mortgages account for about 70% of American household debt. This means Americans are spending a larger percentage of their income on mortgages compared to any other category such as food, auto insurance and utilities. It’s also no surprise that paying your mortgage is one of the most important parts of homeownership.

Thankfully, there are several ways to make paying your mortgage quick and easy. Read on to learn how to pay your mortgage online, in-person, over the phone and more.

Since you're going to be making many monthly payments over the life of your loan, it’s important to understand the nitty-gritty of mortgage payment options. Below are a few ways you can make a payment to your lender. We’ll discuss each option further to help you decide which method is best for you:

A simple method for homeowners to pay their mortgage is through their lender’s website. If you closed your loan with a company that you bank with, setting up scheduled payments should be fairly easy, especially if you already have an account.

For Rocket Mortgage^®, borrowers have to sign in to their account to access the payment center and make a payment.

Depending on your lender or bank, be prepared to provide information like your mortgage account number – along with the routing number and account number for the bank account you would like to withdraw from – to help you access your billing statement and process your payment.

Most importantly, paying online gives you the flexibility to make payments when it’s convenient for you, but it comes with other benefits such as being efficient, free and trackable.

Make Your Online Mortgage Payment Using Digital Tools

Your lender or bank may offer the ability to make payments using additional modern technology. For example, if you closed with Rocket Mortgage, you can make your mortgage payment with the help of our virtual assistant Liv, via chat.

Pay Your Mortgage With A Mobile App

We have to admit, not all of us have the time to sit down and log in to our desktop computer to pay for our mortgage. Apps are a good way to pay when you might not have access to a computer.

For example, after you download the Rocket Mortgage app, you can make a payment on your phone – just as you would on the website. It’s accessible for both iOS and Android phones.

Schedule Payments With Automated Withdrawals

Another easy option to make sure your mortgage is getting paid on time is automated withdrawals, which will be pulled from your checking or savings account. Your lender automatically withdraws the mortgage payment from your bank account on the same day each month.

To take advantage of automatic withdrawals, visit your lender’s website. Once this option is set up, your mortgage payments will be auto deducted each month. By doing this you can guarantee reliable and on-time payments without stressing over having to remember the payment due date. Autopay will also automatically adjust changes to escrow.

Let’s say you’re a Rocket Mortgage client and missed your payment due date. After the grace period, which ends on the 16th of the month, your mortgage payment will be considered late, and you’ll be charged fees. But if you set up automatic payments, your mortgage would have been paid before the due date, preventing late fees.

If your mortgage lender is local, the company may allow you to submit payments by check or money order in person or through the mail.

Make Your Payment With A Money Order

If you’re unfamiliar with money orders, they’re a form of secure payments that don’t include personal information.

The downside is that money orders have a limit between $700 – $1,000. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median mortgage payment is $1,672. So, money orders may not be the best option for most homeowners.

Give Your Lender A Check

Other in-person or mail-in options include a certified check or a cashier’s check, which have no limits.

A check is a dependable method, but it’s not immune to fraud. Keep in mind, checks contain information such as your name, address, checking account number and routing number, all of which would be valuable to a scammer.

Additionally, mailed checks take time to be delivered so they’re not the most reliable option to send a mortgage payment. Especially during the holiday season or bad weather, you may want to consider another payment method since there’s a high chance mail can be delayed.

Sometimes things can go wrong with mailing a payment. If that happens, paying your mortgage by phone can ensure on-time payment.

The phone number of your lender will be located online and on your monthly bill. The process is usually clear-cut. Once you call the phone number, you will be instructed to follow directions from a live representative or automated system. Always be prepared to provide your banking information and mortgage account number.

Before making the payment, be sure to ask the lender if there is an extra fee for using this option. At Rocket Mortgage, there is no additional fee.

A frequent question home buyers ask is if they can make a mortgage payment using a credit card. Most mortgage lenders won’t accept a line of credit as a method of payment. Even if you find a way to make a mortgage payment with your credit card, it’s not recommended as it can cost you more in fees and interest.

Credit card companies typically charge higher interest rates, even if you’re trying to earn rewards points or cash back incentives. And, if you’re unable to pay off your balance at the end of the month, you could be paying double interest on your mortgage.

Now that you know the pros and cons of each mortgage payment option, you might be wondering how you can pay off your mortgage early. One of the simplest ways to accomplish this is by setting up biweekly payments.

Rocket Mortgage clients can set up biweekly payments at no additional cost. By doing this, homeowners pay off their mortgage early and save money on their interest over the life of the loan. Let’s go over how it works.

Every 2 weeks, you would make a half payment, which is applied to your loan when we receive enough to satisfy a full contractual payment. Because of the calendar, there will be 2 months when you make three half-payments. This third payment is applied directly to your loan principal, so you’re making the equivalent of one extra payment directly toward your mortgage balance each year.

In order to set up biweekly payments, you'll need to be a month ahead in your mortgage payments. Then you'll select a date between the 1st and 14th of the month and the second half of your payment is made 2 weeks after the initial date. Payments are made every 2 weeks going forward.

Paying off a mortgage is every homeowner’s goal, and it can be achieved in a few ways. If you prefer to go the old-fashioned route, you might like paying in person or by mail. However, if you’re always on the go, consider making your payment using apps and other available technology. Before you decide which option is best, take the time to review the risk associated with each method.

Have more questions about your home loan payments? Be sure to read our tips for paying off a mortgage early to learn more about the benefits of building up home equity.