Natalie Tomko

Potentially save hundreds of thousands of dollars and years off your mortgage with these smart payment tricks.

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate for the seventh time in two years, signaling continued economic growth and a low unemployment rate. While that might just sound like financial mumbo-jumbo, it could have serious effects on what you pay for your home in the near-future. The benchmark interest, or prime, rate is basically the minimum rate that non-Treasury lenders (a.k.a.