<prompt> Human: My wife and I are building a home and I am looking for some advice on how much to put down as a downpayment. I was planning on rolling over proceeds from the sale of our last home 104k as a way to a. continue down the path of eventually owning our home and b. reducing the monthly paymentinterest owed, but am nervous about the market tanking again and wondering if that money wouldnt be put to better use in a retirement or college savings accounts we have a 3 yr old.We are in our mid 40s. We plan to stay in the house for the foreseeable future but are currently a one income household. I have been fortunate to date and have been able to work remotely for myself and different companies for the last 8 years graphic designweb development and plan to continue doing unless work requires a move.Purchase Price: 323kMortgage: 30 year fixed 4.375 includes 6k builder incentive toward closing costsProjected total monthly w104k down: 1768 saves 32k in interest over life of loanProjected total monthly w20 down to avoid PMI: 1967Current rent is 2110 and includes lawn carePersonal financesBase take-home: 5200mOther monthly income: 1000mCashSavings: 182k including the downpayment 401k: 173k 5 50 employee matchRoth IRA: 25.7k random contributions as able529b: 4.5k mostly family contributionsHSA: 5.2k I usually max this out every year for the tax benefit - already 50 there for 2014Living expenses are 2.7km. We dont carry credit card debt. We have one vehicle that is paid off worth 8k.We are planning on investing 20k of the cashsavings in the house before we move in. Appliances, blinds, paint, ceiling fans, screened patio, etc.. We are on the bottom end of prices in the neighborhood so we shouldnt be pricing ourselves out.My original goal was to continue to roll over my house equity from house to house and to eventually live mortgage free. I do like the idea of having an extra 40k in the bank however. Our shared 11 year old car has low miles but would like to replace in the next year or two. A second car would be great but is currently a luxury unless a job change necessitates it, then would have to get one.I am nervous about the quick rebound in FL home prices and would be pretty crushed if the housing market tanked again and we lost our downpayment as it represents 15 years of sweat equity and modest living with the last house. I also hate paying interest and the extra 200 a month certainly helps free up money for the budgetexpenses. I havent been able to max out our Roth IRA contributions so wondering if it would be better to start moving that 40k there or use it to lower the price of the house?Open to any ideas, thoughts, criticisms. Thank you for reading!Assistant: What you could do is put the 20 down, and then make either extra payments or pay more with each monthly payment. For example, put 20 down, and instead of paying 1768 per month, round up to 2k per month. This will pay off the principal faster and reduce interest cost make sure the extra payment goes towards principal.This would allow a bit more liquid money, while still allowing you to pay off your home faster. Also, in the event that you needed the extra money in an emergency, it isnt all immediately tied up in the home.Human: I agree with this. Pay your 20, save the 40K, and maybe up your monthly payments. You can put that money into the house at any time. If youre uncertain, just wait. Theres no rush.Assistant: Something Ive always wondered. If we did the 20 dp and started making accelerated payments, are the interest savings immediately realized? Or are they only realized if and when the loan is fully paid off. In other words, do the amount of your payments decrease each month or do you still owe the minimum amount from your original amortization schedule?  <response>: Afaik, assuming conventional mortgage, your payment stays the same. You will just knock payments off the end of the mortgage as you pay ahead. 