Below is a short list of these interest-only mortgage rate benefits. Benefits of Interest-Only Mortgage Rates Interest-only mortgage rates allow you greater purchasing power. Because interest-only mortgage rates have lower costs compared to fixed rates or other types of loans, you are afforded extra money which would have been spent on high monthly payments. This however is not always the case. Interest-only mortgage payment schedules are also offered in fixed rate mortgages as well. Interest-only mortgages have also gone mainstream so virtually anyone can borrow money with this type of loan. Temporary Payment Periods The payment periods for interest-only mortgages almost never run for the entire term of the loan. With balloon payment mortgages, if you can't pay the lender the amount on the due date, you might have to foreclose and lose the property. Some lenders offer extensions for their 30-years-due-in-7 balloon payment mortgages. Lenders of this type of loan may extend your balloon payment mortgage for another 23 years but with a new interest rate. But within the next year or two, financial experts have come up with predictions mostly outlining the rise of mortgage interest rates. A sad fact however, is that with mortgage interest rates, there are no certainties and no guarantees. No one can really tell whether or not mortgage interest rates will rise over a period of time. 15-year Fixed Rate Mortgage - Advantages and Disadvantages One of the advantages that attract borrowers into taking a 15-year fixed rate mortgage is the fact that amortization periods for this type of loan are usually shorter. This allows 15-year fixed rate mortgage borrowers to build equity much quicker. The former type of second mortgage loans will allow you to significantly shorten your payoff period since with each payment you make, you are also chipping away at the principal. With the interest-only second mortgage loan however you will be required to pay back the entire amount that you borrowed as soon as the term ends.