Effective Interest Rate
The term effective interest rate is the actual return from a savings account or any investment where you pay interest when considering the effects of compounding costs over time. Through an effective interest rate, you can fully and correctly determine the real percentage rate that you own on a loan’s interest, a credit card, or any other debt type.
An effective interest rate is also referred to as an effective annual interest rate, the annual equivalent rate, or the effective rate.
The Effective Interest Rate Formula:
With:
i = Nominal Interest Rate
n = Number of periods
What does the Effective Interest Rate Mean?
When you look at loans, the way through which they are advertised will give you two types of information. Firstly, we’ll have the nominal interest rate, which doesn’t consider the effects compounding interest or fees have on the financial product. Secondly, and the one we focus on now, the effective interest rate, which gives you the real return paid on savings of the actual cost of a loan because it does take into account the effect fees and compounding interest have on the financial product.
For that exact reason, knowing and understanding what the effective interest rate means is important. Through a proper understanding of the effective interest rate, you can compare offers more accurately to make an informed decision based on the result.
How to Find the Effective Interest Rate?
To adequately explain how to find the effective interest rate from any financial product’s promotional information, we will look at two examples. Firstly, we’ll have Loan A that has a 5% interest rate that’s compounded monthly. Secondly, we’ll have Loan B with a 5.1% interest rate that’s compounded bi-annually.
Both of these loans are advertised with their nominal interest rate. Remember, this is the one that doesn’t take into account the effects fees and compounding interest has on the loan. To calculate the effective interest rate, we’ll use the formula shown above.
While the nominal interest rate for Loan A is smaller than that of Loan B’s, the effective interest rate from Loan B is lower than that of Loan A’s. This occurs because Loan B has fewer compounding times over the course of a year.
Popular Real Estate Terms
A notice, usually in writing, in which notice of termination is given by one individual or business to another. It is pursuant to a cancellation provision in a contract to forestall ...
property having an easement right through another adjoining property. The property through which the easement passes is considered to have the servient tenement. ...
Appraisal approach where property values are estimated by comparing current comparable sales. See also market approach. ...
The clause in a deed beginning with the words " to have and to hold" limiting or defining the ownership nature of the estate in the property granted by the deed. Declares the type of ...
Property owned and held jointly and equally shared by each spouse. It is purchased during their marriage, regardless of the wage-earning situation of either spouse. A spouse may not make a ...
The Exclusive Agency Listing is regularly confused with the Exclusive Right to Sell Listing, but they are not the same. True: on both Listings, only 1 Broker or Agent has the right to sell ...
Levy charged to use something such as water supplied by the town. ...
Taxes owed due to nonpayment, underreporting, or omission (unknowingly or intentionally) from a prior year. The taxing authority will demand the back taxes, including possible fines, ...
Wires, such as for electricity, places beneath the floor of a structure. ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.