Thirty-Year Ledger method
How we research
Ledger note
Thirty-Year Ledger is built from public rulebooks, agency explainers and official forms, read first-hand rather than summarized from other websites. CFPB amortization and loan-term guidance is the main reference for term comparisons here, and it is rechecked first.
Last reviewed against the primary sources listed below.
Where questions come from
Topics come from the questions people type into search engines about this subject, gathered from free public autocomplete suggestions, then narrowed to the ones this site's focus can answer well.
Sources we rely on
Pages cite these primary sources, among others. Each guide lists the exact sources it used at the bottom of the page.
How a page is checked
- Each factual statement is matched to a primary source.
- Simplified explanations are reread against the original text.
- The review date at the top of the page is updated only after that check.
Pages written this way
- 30-year vs 20-year vs 15-year mortgage: the trade-off framework
- How equity builds on a 30-year mortgage, year by year
- Is a 30-year fixed mortgage worth it? When it fits
- 40-year and 50-year mortgages: what longer terms mean
- Can older borrowers get a 30-year mortgage? Age and loan term
- Loan term and refinancing later: resetting the clock
- Are 10-year and 20-year mortgages worth considering?
- Where to compare loan terms on the Loan Estimate
About the Thirty-Year Ledger term trade-off visualizer
The Thirty-Year Ledger term trade-off visualizer runs in your browser on the numbers or answers you enter. Nothing is prefilled, stored or sent.