Bi-weekly mortgages are becoming more and more common today. Bi-weekly mortgages, as the name suggests, require a payment to be made every other week rather than the 12 monthly payments required on monthly mortgages.

Every other week home mortgages have not been well-known for long. However, some smart people chose to enjoy the benefit of the bi-weekly payment plan because they were interested in owning their home free and clear as soon as possible. They learned that applying as little as the amount of one extra monthly payment paid toward the principal would bring their mortgage payoff much sooner than 30 years.

Many, many people receive their paychecks on a bi-weekly basis. Bi-weekly does not, in fact, mean twice per month. Many months have two paychecks or two bi-weekly payments on a loan that is bi-weekly, but other months you will have 3 paychecks and possibly 3 bi-weekly mortgage payments. Let's say the first day of the month you make your bi-weekly mortgage payment. Your next one would be due on the 15th, and a 3rd would be due on the 29th.

Since there are 52 weeks in a year, bi-weekly means 26 times per year. Twice per month would, instead, be 24 times per year. Home loans that are bi-weekly payment-based will have 26 payments made per year. Therein is the secret advantage to the bi-weekly mortgage! Another option is to simply make an extra payment once per year (check that prepayment penalties don't apply to you) - this will also reduce the total amount you pay to your mortgage company.

If you have an existing mortgage, there is always a charge to switch to a mortgage that is paid every other week. However, you can enjoy the benefits of the bi-weekly mortgages without having to pay a fee! Instead of sending one-half of the amount of a monthly payment to the loan company every other week, place the funds in your bank account. The amount of one month’s payments per year will be left over if you place money in the bank every other week. So, you should pay the extra money equal to one month’s payment to the mortgage company, applying it toward principal. Then, with no fee whatsoever, you will be able to enjoy a bi-weekly home mortgage, provided there are no pre-payment penalties and you are allowed to do so by your mortgage lender.

If you are going into a mortgage initially, you can ask for a bi-weekly mortgage and learn how much the payments will be. Or, you can turn to the Internet and locate a simple to use mortgage calculator that supports every other week payment calculators. They are easy to locate.

Also, locate a mortgage calculator that supports monthly mortgage payments. They are even easier to locate. Place the same numbers into both calculators and see the difference for yourself.

There is nothing like sitting down and studying the figures yourself to determine exactly what the best mortgage plan is for you. Everyone’s situation is slightly different and somewhat unique. No one mortgage type is best for everyone. No one can say that a bi-weekly home mortgage is best for you, except, possibly, your financial advisor.

When performing research before settling on the financing plan for a home, be sure to include bi-weekly mortgages in your research. Become well educated about all the types of mortgages available so that you know the questions to ask. You will also know how to best compare the differences in payments, interest rates, terms of payment, and life span of the mortgages you investigate.