Mortgage Repayments: Monthly or Fortnightly

Is it best to repay your mortgage with fortnightly repayments or monthly ?and if so how much difference does it really make.

I did some calculations based on a 100,000 mortgage at 7% per annum, with the interest calculated daily but charged monthly.

I also used one of the big banks calculators to determine the repayment rates.

The first calculation was based on the monthly repayments of $707.00.

Option ONE
Total Interest over 1 year was:  $6,948.42
Total Repayments over 1 one was: $8,484.00

Next was a Fortnightly repayment based on the above annual repayment, divided by 26 fortnights: $326.30 per F/N

Option TWO
Total Interest over 1 year was:  $6,935.14
Total Repayments over 1 one was: $8,483.80

Next, a Fortnightly repayment based on the banks recommended payment of one half of a months normal repayment: $353.20 per F/N

Option THREE
Total Interest over 1 year was:  $6,910.91
Total Repayments over 1 one was: $9,183.20

So, the answer is only a very small saving in interest.

Using option Two, the saving is $13.28 for the entire year.
Using option Three, the saving is $37.51 for the entire year.

The REAL benefit is with option Three, where the difference is that you are actually paying more per month, than in the first monthly payment version, a consequently your annual repayments are that much higher.  This is where the real difference is.

This could still be done, by paying monthly, but by paying a higher monthly figure, ie:

Option FOUR

A  monthly repayment of $765.30.

Total Interest over 1 year was:  $6,925.29
Total Repayments over 1 one was: $9,183.60

The best option from all of them is actually option THREE.