Mortgage tools
Rate Horizon
Compare the two live pricing structures available on the same loan — the zero-discount-point option, and the lowest rate costing more than zero and no more than 1.000 discount points — and see how long the lower payment takes to recover the extra upfront cost.
Pricing source effective 10/09/2026. Not a rate lock.
Your scenario
Break-even on the discount points
38 months
About 3 years 2 months for the lower payment to recover the $6,008 of additional upfront cost. I usually look for a simple points payback in about two to three years (24–36 months). This example’s estimated 38 months is longer than that preference.
A negative figure is a lender credit toward closing costs.
30-year fixed · Approximately 360 monthly principal-and-interest payments of $4,403. This P&I amount excludes property taxes, homeowners insurance, HOA/CDD dues, flood insurance and other property-specific costs; your actual total monthly payment will be higher.
More than zero and no more than the 1.000 discount-point cap.
30-year fixed · Approximately 360 monthly principal-and-interest payments of $4,241. This P&I amount excludes property taxes, homeowners insurance, HOA/CDD dues, flood insurance and other property-specific costs; your actual total monthly payment will be higher.
Accumulated monthly saving minus the additional upfront cost, if you keep this loan.
780–799 · Primary residence · Single-family · 30-year fixed · 30-day lock · Florida. Base loan $637,500. Approximately 360 monthly principal-and-interest payments.
Pricing source effective 10/09/2026. Illustrative estimate. May change or be unavailable at commitment or closing · Not a rate lock.
See the timeline
| After | Net position |
|---|---|
| 2 years | $2,126 still to recover |
| 4 years | $1,756 ahead |
| 6 years | $5,638 ahead |
| 8 years | $9,520 ahead |
| 10 years | $13,402 ahead |
Illustrative estimate from the latest imported wholesale pricing. Not a rate lock, not a loan offer, and not a commitment to lend. Terms depend on verified borrower, property, program, lock and underwriting details.
How to read this result
- What the break-even actually is
- The month at which the accumulated monthly principal-and-interest saving has recovered the additional upfront discount-point cost. Before it, the lower-upfront-cost option has the cost advantage. After it, the lower-rate option may begin producing net savings — assuming you keep that loan.
- It is not the month points stop making sense
- Points are not wasted before the break-even and not free after it. The break-even is one number in the decision; how long you actually expect to keep the loan, and what else you would do with the cash, are the others.
- This is not the refinance question
- Rate Horizon compares two pricing structures for the SAME new loan. Whether to replace a mortgage you already have is a different calculation, with different inputs — that is the Should I Refinance? calculator.
Other calculators
Assumptions, method and disclosures
What this calculator assumed
- Florida property, single-family residence, purchase, 30-day lock — the assumptions the pricing engine applies.
- Exactly two structures are offered: the zero-discount-point option (an exact-zero row when priced, otherwise the lowest available rate carrying an actual lender credit), and the lowest note rate whose borrower-paid discount points are more than zero and no more than 1.000. There is no third option.
- Both options are priced on the SAME scenario, so the only difference between them is the pricing structure.
- Pricing source effective 10/09/2026.
- Rates change. This is not a rate lock and not a loan offer.
How the numbers are calculated
Additional upfront cost is the difference between the two options’ estimated cash-to-close totals — not the points difference alone, which would ignore how points move the rest of the cash figure. Monthly saving is the difference in principal and interest. The displayed differences round those exact deltas to the nearest dollar. Break-even uses the unrounded values and rounds up to the next whole month.
Where the lower-rate option does not cost more upfront, or does not lower the payment, no break-even is shown and the reason is stated. No figure here is ever displayed as zero months, a negative number, or an unavailable value dressed as a result.
Both options come from the same pricing call this site’s rates page uses, on the same two selections. The same scenario produces the same rate, APR, points and payment on both pages by construction — there is one engine and one pair of selection rules.
Rate and APR are shown with equal prominence. The payment shown is principal and interest only; property taxes, homeowners insurance, HOA or CDD dues and any applicable mortgage insurance or funding fee are additional and will increase the actual monthly payment.
This is a planning estimate, not a loan offer, rate quote, approval, pre-approval, or commitment to lend.
Interest rates you enter here are assumptions, not APRs.
Results depend entirely on the inputs and assumptions above.
Your official Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure control the actual terms of any loan.
Mortgage Expert, Inc. originates loans on Florida property only. Minimum loan amount $100,000.