There is always a debate when home buyers have to decide on the merits of 15 or 30 year fixed mortgage rates. Buying a home later in life means that many people want to have the mortgage paid off early. Decisions of this nature need careful consideration before any commitment is made. Home buyers looking into this need to be assured their monthly payments will not increase.

Steer clear of lenders that are offering unbelievable deals because they probably are. A 15 year fixed rate mortgage means the interest rate remains stable for the life of the loan.

There are no hidden costs involved with this type of plan which is great for many people that want a regular monthly payment. When we were looking to buy a home, my wife and I decided to go for a loan with a 15 year fixed mortgage rate.

Having a realistic, sustainable monthly payment on our mortgage was important even though we wanted to pay off our debt as soon as possible. This meant we had to consider 30 year fixed rate mortgage plans as well as those of 15 years.

The problem was that we were not very happy about having a mortgage close to when we both retired so it was our hope a 15 year fixed mortgage rate would still be available to us. It was not easy for us because of the stress to pay the house off early.

Taking everything into account we finally went for the easier 30 year mortgage plan instead. Many factors were taken into account when reaching this decision. The main reason was that I found out my wife was pregnant.

My wife decided she wanted to raise our child at home so I could not be certain of her monthly financial commitment to our household expenses. The downside to the 15 year fixed mortgage rate was the higher monthly repayment. We just decided we would probably get into trouble if we took this route. A thirty year loan brought the monthly payments down to a reasonable level.

We found that if we could make a few extra payments throughout each year then it would gradually reduce the principle sum owed. It is possible to take years off your loan if you can make a few extra payments during each year. This may be difficult but well worth the effort in the a few years down the line. Our desire for a 15 year fixed rate mortgage was second place to our more immediate needs. Things worked out well anyway, even though we were unsure about it to start with.