The total amount you are borrowing, after you have paid the deposit, and any related fees.
Interest Rate (%p.a.)
The current rate of interest that will apply for the life of your loan. This is always expressed on a per annum basis.
Loan Term (yrs)
How long the loan lasts, in years. At the end of the term it must be repaid. Note that the horizontal axis in the charts above and below the calculator refer to payment number, rather than years.
Payment Frequency
How often repayments are made and when. The frequency can be set to one of 'Monthly', 'Fortnightly' or 'Weekly' and the user has the choice of making the payments at the begining of that payment period ('in Advance') or at the end of the payment period ('in Arrears').
BalloonPayment ($)
The amount of the principal that will still be owing at the end of the loan term. If it is the same as the Loan Amount, the loan is effectively "interest only".
Monthly fee ($)
The fees the financial institution charges you for your loan account. Often this is zero, but some institutions charge for special benefit packages or revolving credit account arrangements.
Repayment
amount ($)
The amount you will pay for every period selected in the Payment Frequency box.
By selecting a particular radio butoon the Calculator will solve for the value adjacent to the radio button. This means you can change all other values, and the answer will appear in the box adjacent to the selected radio button. You cannot change the value of a box if the button next to it is selected.
Error messages
If you enter a value that makes it impossible for the calculator to calculate a result, an error message box will appear at the top right of your screen. Often, a valid value will appear in that box, and you should enter that value to move on. Or, simply cancel the error message pop-up, and enter a new (higher) value than the one that caused the message to appear.
