Q. If I make 14 mortgage payments within a 12-month period, would that reduce my 30-year, fixed-rate loan to a 15-year mortgage?

A. You certainly can reduce the term of your mortgage by making extra payments.

As a general rule, making one extra payment per year will shorten the life of any mortgage by about five years. (And by extra payment, we mean the amount you're paying in interest and principal, excluding taxes and insurance.)

So, while you couldn't go from a 30-year to a 15-year by making two extra payments in a single year, you can shorten your mortgage by about 10 years by making two extra payments every year.

Our mortgage calculator will show you exactly by how much you can shorten your mortgage.

At the top of the page put in the term, the loan amount and the interest rate you're paying. Then at the bottom, put in a monthly or yearly amount for extra payments. Then click on "show amortization table" and scroll down. At the bottom of the chart, you will see the date when your mortgage will be paid off.

It will also tell you how much you'll pay in total interest charges, which will be much less than if you allow the loan to run the full 30 years.