By The Chipkie Team, Personal Finance Editorial Team · Last updated 5 October 2026
A family loan repayment schedule makes one promise specific: how the borrowed money will come back. Instead of “a little every month,” both people can see the due dates, expected payments, and planned balance. That clarity helps you talk about a missed payment without arguing about what was originally agreed.
You can copy the table below into a document or spreadsheet. Use it alongside your written agreement, then keep a separate record of what actually happens. A schedule predicts payments; a ledger records the payments you have verified.
Key Takeaways
- A repayment schedule should identify the loan, payment dates, interest calculation, and expected remaining principal.
- Zero-interest payments reduce principal pound for pound; interest-bearing payments must separate interest from principal.
- Weekly, every-two-week, and twice-monthly payments produce different numbers of instalments.
- Rounding and extra payments can change the last payment, so reconcile the balance before closing the loan.
What should a family loan repayment schedule include?
A family loan repayment schedule should show the opening principal, each due date, scheduled payment, interest amount, principal repaid, and expected closing balance. Identify the agreement it belongs to and state the calculation method. Both people should keep the same dated version, with later changes recorded separately.
First settle the terms covered in your written family loan agreement. Calculating a table before agreeing on the rate or first payment date creates false precision.
- Loan details: lender, borrower, amount advanced, transfer date, and agreement date.
- Payment timing: first due date, frequency, number of payments, and maturity date.
- Interest: annual rate, periodic or daily calculation, and rounding convention.
- Allocation: how payments cover interest, principal, and any separately agreed charges.
- Changes: how extra payments, hardship pauses, and revised schedules are approved.
Copyable blank schedule: enter one row for every scheduled payment. Opening principal is the amount still borrowed at the beginning of that period. Closing principal is opening principal minus the principal portion of that payment.
| Payment | Due date | Opening principal | Scheduled payment | Interest | Principal repaid | Closing principal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| 2 | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| 3 | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ |
How do zero-interest and interest-bearing schedules work?
A zero-interest schedule divides the principal across the agreed instalments. An amortising interest-bearing schedule calculates interest on the unpaid principal, then applies the rest of each payment to principal. The examples below assume payments arrive exactly on time, with no fees, additional advances, or changes to the agreement.
- Example one: zero interest. A hypothetical £1,200 loan repaid over 12 months requires twelve £100 payments. After payment one, principal is £1,100; after payment six, it is £600; after payment twelve, it is zero.
- Example two: monthly interest. Assume a hypothetical £1,200 loan, a 6% annual rate, and 12 monthly payments. The agreed monthly rate is 6% divided by 12, or 0.5%. This is an illustrative rate, not a mandatory family-loan rate or a recommendation.
Use eleven payments of £103.28 and a final payment of £103.24, rounding each month’s interest to pence before calculating principal. MoneyHelper describes fixed monthly personal-loan repayments; your private arrangement needs its own agreed calculation. The arithmetic below follows the stated hypothetical monthly method.
| Month | Payment | Interest | Principal repaid | Closing principal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £103.28 | £6.00 | £97.28 | £1,102.72 |
| 2 | £103.28 | £5.51 | £97.77 | £1,004.95 |
| 3 | £103.28 | £5.02 | £98.26 | £906.69 |
| 4 | £103.28 | £4.53 | £98.75 | £807.94 |
| 5 | £103.28 | £4.04 | £99.24 | £708.70 |
| 6 | £103.28 | £3.54 | £99.74 | £608.96 |
| 7 | £103.28 | £3.04 | £100.24 | £508.72 |
| 8 | £103.28 | £2.54 | £100.74 | £407.98 |
| 9 | £103.28 | £2.04 | £101.24 | £306.74 |
| 10 | £103.28 | £1.53 | £101.75 | £204.99 |
| 11 | £103.28 | £1.02 | £102.26 | £102.73 |
| 12 | £103.24 | £0.51 | £102.73 | £0.00 |
| Total | £1,239.32 | £39.32 | £1,200.00 | £0.00 |
How should you handle payment frequency and rounding?
Match the repayment schedule to the exact frequency and interest method in the agreement. Twice-monthly payments are not the same as payments every two weeks. Decide whether interest is calculated by period or by day, and whether calculations retain extra decimal places or round each period to pence.
- Monthly: normally 12 scheduled payments across a full year.
- Twice monthly: normally 24 payments, such as on the first and fifteenth.
- Every two weeks: normally 26 payments across 52 weeks; count the actual due dates.
- Weekly: count the dates rather than assuming every calendar year contains exactly 52 due dates.
Do not simply halve a monthly payment and relabel it every two weeks. Different timing changes annual payments and may change interest. Our guide to calculating interest explains the underlying distinction.
For the illustrated monthly method, interest equals opening principal multiplied by 0.005. Principal repaid equals payment minus interest. Carry the new principal into the next row. A daily-interest agreement instead needs its agreed day-count basis and actual payment dates.
What happens after extra or late payments?
Extra or late payments require the actual-payment record to be updated before the future schedule is recalculated. Apply money according to the agreement, identify any amount reducing principal, and confirm the revised balance together. A missed payment is not repayment, and a payment pause is not automatically debt forgiveness.
- Record the payment date, amount, and bank reference.
- Separate interest paid from principal paid using the agreed method.
- Record unpaid interest or charges separately unless the agreement lawfully permits adding them to principal.
- Recalculate future rows from the actual principal balance.
- Keep the old schedule and any signed change alongside the new version.
For a zero-interest loan with £600 remaining, an agreed £200 extra principal payment leaves £400. Keeping £100 monthly payments then requires four more payments. Reducing each instalment instead is a different arrangement that both people should expressly confirm. A shared family loan tracker helps distinguish these choices.
Can a family loan repayment schedule charge zero interest?
A family repayment schedule can use zero contractual interest if that is genuinely agreed. Keep that choice explicit and distinguish repayments from gifts. Charging interest raises separate income-tax questions; cancelling principal raises different inheritance-tax questions. Neither issue is answered simply by dividing the amount borrowed into monthly payments.
UK families should use UK guidance rather than US minimum-rate rules. GOV.UK explains tax on savings interest and the allowances that can apply. An ordinary private loan’s cash schedule and the lender’s tax calculation remain separate records.
Is a repayment schedule enough without a loan agreement?
A repayment schedule records expected numbers, but may omit the promises and conditions underlying them. Pair it with clear agreed terms identifying the parties, amount, interest, repayment obligations, and treatment of changes. A spreadsheet alone does not guarantee enforceability or resolve disagreement about whether the original transfer was a gift.
Why might the final payment differ from earlier payments?
The final payment can differ because interest and regular payments were rounded, payment dates changed, or additional principal was repaid. Calculate the balance through the actual final payment date using the agreed method. Confirm the closing amount before transferring it, rather than assuming the original instalment will clear everything.
What should you do before the first payment is due?
Before the first payment, confirm the written terms, check the calculations, and give both people the same schedule. Choose a payment reference that identifies the loan and keep actual receipts alongside the plan. Review changes together so the schedule remains a useful shared record throughout the repayment period.
You can create your loan agreement with Chipkie and keep repayment expectations clear, then track payments against the plan you both understand.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial or legal advice. Property and lending laws in the United Kingdom vary and may change over time. We always recommend consulting with a qualified solicitor and mortgage broker before entering into a property purchase or financial arrangement with another party.
