I'm just not good with numbers.
I always wonder, when I hear that:
1) Who told you that?
2) Why did you believe them?
Accumulated or present values pretty Irrelevant for my purposes.
No, these are exactly what is relevant.
I tried looking up other amortization schedules and calculators online but I couldn't figure out which tool to use given that the borrower didn't paper the original amortisation schedule and then lowered their payment part way through the loan.
I don't really care much for the legalities, I just want to make sure that I can close this transaction.
Thanks.
The exact terms of the loan are known only to the parties to the loan. It is hard to offer an unqualified opinion concerning the actual payoff amount or timing without knowledge of the contractual details.
Hint #1: $27,000 * 0.03 / 12 = $67.50 This suggests that both payment levels are well in excess of paying off some of the loan with each payment. We can conclude that the loan has not spent any time growing during the 77 months.
Hint #2: Accumulated Value
2a) $27,000 * (1 + 0.03/12)^20 = ?
2b) $500 monthly, accumulated at 3%/12 monthly, for 20 months is...?
We can conclude that the remaining loan after 20 months is $18,141.45
Hint #3: $300 * 57 = $17,100. We can conclude that 57 payments of $300 does not pay off the principle, not to mention any interest accrued over the 57 months of payments.
Conclusions:
1) The loan is NOT paid off.
2) There is certainly no refund currently due.
Hint #4: More Accumulated Value
2a) $18,141.45 * (1 + 0.03/12)^57 = ?
2b) $300 monthly, accumulated at 3%/12 monthly, for 57 months is...?
So how much is left after 57 months?
Note: All of this assumes a certain set of rules for calculating the loan values. If these rules do not apply to this particular loan, then there are different answers. This is my qualified opinion.