The additional fees you may be required to pay when paying your loan off early can run into the thousands of dollars.  A situation you may want to avoid.  Sometimes a prepayment fee can be reduced or eliminated by negotiating with the lender.  Whether or not he will be willing to negotiate will have a lot to do with the amount you pay in loan fees or on the interest rate in the loan contract.  If you have a hybrid adjustable rate mortgage be sure to check the prepayment penalty period.  If the prepayment period is in effect for 5 years, it may be costly to refinance before the prepayment penalty period is expired.  Most mortgages let you make additional payments toward the principal of the loan along with your regular monthly payments.  Most of the time this would not be considered prepayment and normally there are no penalties for these additional payments.  However, you may want the check with your lender to make sure there is no penalty if you think that there is a possibility you may want to make this type of prepayment.

You could be subject to pay a conversion fee if you negotiated with the lender to allow your adjustable rate mortgage to a fixed rate mortgage at designated times.  A conversion fee may be required at the time of the conversion on a convertible adjustable rate mortgage.

When negotiating the loan on your first home, you need to be well prepared, informed and educated about loans and the different types of loans.  Lenders may not tell you the risks involved with certain loans in certain situations or he may just make light of the risks involved.  Being familiar with each type of loan and the risks involved will enable you to get the information you need from the lender or broker.  This will also help you decide on the best type of loan for you and you will be able to find the best rates.