This is a good question, and one you should consider before you start looking for a home; you don’t want to fall in love with a property that it turns out you can’t afford.
The simple answer to this question is that if you take out a fixed rate mortgage, your payment will stay the same for the life of the loan.
If you take out an adjustable rate mortgage, you should expect some fluctuation in both the interest rate and the payment.
The more in-depth answer is that, regardless of what type of mortgage you take out, you will always have fluctuations in your total housing expense, which is more than just the mortgage payment itself.
These additional items, mainly property taxes and property insurance, can go up over time (and most likely will). Whether they are included in your mortgage payment or you pay them separately, they are part of your monthly housing expense.
All of this points to the fact that when you are planning to purchase a home, you should expect some changes in these variable factors that make up your overall housing expense.
How can you get an idea of what property taxes and insurance will look like over time? To answer these questions, I can put you in touch with the experts.
A real estate agent can pull up historical tax records for properties in the area where you are looking.
As far as property insurance rates go, events such as severe weather, regardless of whether or not they impact your area, can affect the insurance rates of everyone involved in the larger insurance pool. One of my local insurance agent partners can provide a wealth of information on this and other insurance issues.
If you have questions about any of this, please give me a call. If I’m unable to answer any of your questions, I’ll put you in touch with someone who can.