For Wyckoff homeowners who want the mortgage gone sooner: why extra principal early does the most, the plain ways to send it, a recast after a lump sum, a shorter refinance, and when not to rush. Fidelity Residential is a direct, licensed mortgage lender with a New Jersey office on Route 36 in West Long Branch, in Monmouth County, and we lend across New Jersey.
Pick the closest, or call and talk it through.
Fidelity Residential · NMLS #103098 · Equal Housing Lender
The American Community Survey, the Census Bureau’s estimates for 2020 to 2024, counts about 17,100 residents in Wyckoff Township and about 6,200 homes. More than nine occupied homes in ten, an estimated 92.7 percent, are owner-occupied.
Many households have been in their homes a long time. About one in three, an estimated 33.2 percent, has lived in the same home since before 2000, and about 11 percent moved in during 2020 or later.
Fidelity Residential is a direct mortgage lender licensed in New Jersey under a Residential Mortgage Lender License. Our office is at 121 NJ-36, Suite 230, West Long Branch, in Monmouth County; we do not have an office in Wyckoff, and we lend across New Jersey.
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020 to 2024. Estimates, not counts.
What pays a house off sooner is money left over each month, sent to the right place. No product creates that money for you.
In the early years of a mortgage, much of each payment goes to interest rather than to the balance. Extra money sent to principal early removes balance that would otherwise go on charging interest for years, so the same amount saves more interest early in the loan than near the end.
Check two things first. Look in your loan documents for any charge for paying the loan off early, and make sure your servicer applies the extra money to principal. Mark each extra payment as principal and check the next statement.
Steady beats clever here. Each of these sends more to principal without a new loan, and you can stop or change it when you need to.
The early payoff calculator shows what extra payments could do to your own loan, using numbers you enter; it is an estimate, not an offer.
Extra principal on its own shortens the loan but leaves the required payment where it was. With a recast, the servicer works the payment out again on the lower balance, at the same rate and over the time left, so the bill drops while the end date stays put. No new loan and no appraisal; expect a fee, and ask for the servicer’s written policy first.
Paying your mortgage off fasterA refinance can change the length of the loan, shorter to pay it off sooner. It is a new loan with a new rate, a new term and its own closing costs, so compare it with simply sending extra to principal.
Refinancing your mortgageA recast lowers the principal and interest part of the payment; taxes and insurance paid through escrow stay as they are. And because less principal is then paid each month, total interest ends up higher than if you had kept sending the old payment.
A spare dollar has other jobs. Think twice before speeding up the mortgage if you do not yet have an emergency fund, if you carry higher-interest debt such as credit cards, if you would give up an employer match on retirement savings, or if the payments would leave you short of cash. A financial adviser or tax adviser can help you weigh it.
A method to be wary of. Some courses say to run your paycheck through a home equity line of credit. Almost all of the savings come from the extra principal you could already send; the line adds a variable rate that can rise, and the lender can reduce or freeze it.
Yes. Fidelity Residential is a dba of PFN Lending Group, Inc. (NMLS #103098), which holds a New Jersey Residential Mortgage Lender License, and we lend across New Jersey. You can check the licence on NMLS Consumer Access (opens in a new tab).
No. Our office is at 121 NJ-36, Suite 230, West Long Branch, NJ 07764, in Monmouth County, and we lend across New Jersey. Call 732-686-9999 to talk with a licensed loan officer.
No. The required payment was set when the loan closed, so it stays the same and the loan ends sooner. A recast is what lowers the required payment after a lump sum.
Some loans carry one. Check your loan documents before you send extra money.
Second mortgages, lines of credit and a loan that is behind usually cannot, and many government-backed loans can be re-figured to cure a missed payment but not after a voluntary lump sum. Ask your servicer for its written policy.
A shorter loan costs more each month and less over its life, and a refinance has closing costs. Extra principal leaves the choice with you each month. Compare both with your own numbers.
Get a quote online, or call us and talk it through with a licensed loan officer.
This page is general information, not a commitment to lend. Programs, terms and eligibility depend on credit, income, property and underwriting review and are subject to change without notice.
Reviewed by Robert Shamie, CEO, NMLS #241428 · Last reviewed:
Fidelity Residential (PFN Lending Group, Inc., NMLS #103098) is a direct mortgage lender licensed in 40 states and the District of Columbia, with 26 years in business.