(METRO) Monthly mortgage payments are the biggest single expense for many homeowners. So it’s understandable why plenty of homeowners would love to trim those costs.

A host of factors determine how much homeowners pay for their mortgages each month. The cost of the home, the amount of the initial down payment and property taxes, which are often folded into monthly payments, will factor heavily into the cost of home ownership.

While homeowners may feel as though there’s little wiggle room to cut the costs of their mortgages, there are several ways to do just that and potentially trim years from the life of a home loan.

—Make bi-weekly payments. Making bi-weekly instead of once-a-month payments can save homeowners substantial amounts of money. A year’s worth of once-a-month payments equates to 12 payments per year. But homeowners who pay on a bi-weekly basis will make 26 half payments, or 13 full payments, per year. That extra annual payment can be applied directly to the princ...