How long until the balance hits 80% of the price

The calculator walks each payment until the balance is at or under 80% of the original price, then names that month.

The target is fixed

Eighty percent of the price you typed is a dollar balance. It does not move when rates in the market move, and it does not move if you imagine the house is worth more later.

The walk uses the note rate and the term. Each row of the schedule is checked until the balance is within a penny of the target.

Already there

If you start at or under the target, the month count is now. The payment mix also drops PMI, because the loan did not begin above 80%.

A month count of several years means the early principal slices are small. A shorter term or a larger down payment pulls the date in.

On the household month

When PMI is in the payment, the month screen lists a PMI date: you can ask in that named month, or now, or it states that this loan does not reach 80% of the home value.

That sentence is the same schedule as the mortgage screen. Changing the rate or the term on the calculator updates it.

This explains how WiseCalculator treats the numbers you type. It is not a lender’s offer and it is not advice for your loan.