Before buying a home, you should ideally save enough money for a 20% down payment. If you can't, it's a safe bet that your lender will force you to secure private mortgage insurance (PMI) prior to signing off on the loan, if you're taking out a conventional mortgage.
It's nearly impossible to make that kind of return in the stock market, retirement account, or another financial instrument. PMI, then, can be viewed as an investment — a very sound one — and not a waste of money.
PMI, of course, is private mortgage insurance. It's the monthly premium you pay if you can't put at least 20 percent down on a home purchase or have at least 20 percent equity in a refinance. It doesn't actually insure you, but compensates your lender in the event of default.
You should pay PMI upfront if: You have the extra savings to cover the premium cost. If you have extra cash to cover your down payment, closing costs and the extra premium expense, you'll end up with a lower monthly payment. Your closing costs are being paid by the seller.
One way to avoid paying PMI is to make a down payment that is equal to at least one-fifth of the purchase price of the home; in mortgage-speak, the mortgage's loan-to-value (LTV) ratio is 80%. If your new home costs $180,000, for example, you would need to put down at least $36,000 to avoid paying PMI.
Get an 80-10-10 loan
One loan covers 80% of the home price, and the other loan covers a 10% down payment. Combined with your savings for a 10% down payment, this type of loan can help you avoid PMI.
Use a “piggyback loan” with 10% down and no PMI
Another way to avoid PMI is by using a piggyback mortgage. This is a unique loan structure where the buyer needs only 10% down in cash. The buyer then takes out a second mortgage loan, which provides another 10% of the home's purchase price.
PMI Premium: The higher the PMI premium, the more likely the higher rate is a better deal. Premiums vary with the type of loan, term, down payment and other factors. The Rate Increment: The smaller the increase in the interest rate charged in lieu of PMI, the greater the advantage of the higher rate loan.
Is PMI deductible? The legislation, signed into law Dec. 20, 2019, not only makes the deduction available again for eligible homeowners for the 2020 and future tax years, but also enables taxpayers to take it retroactively for the 2018 and 2019 tax years by filing amended returns.
You may be able to get rid of PMI earlier by asking the mortgage servicer, in writing, to drop PMI once your mortgage balance reaches 80% of the home's value at the time you bought it.
PMI is expensive. Unless you think you'll be able to attain 20% equity in the home within a couple of years, it probably makes sense to wait until you can make a larger down payment or consider a less expensive home, which will make a 20% down payment more affordable. Federal Housing Authority.
“In general, private mortgage insurance is available for borrowers with credit scores as low as 620 with down payments as low as 3 percent,” says Anthony Guarino, senior vice president of pricing and credit policy for Genworth Mortgage Insurance.
Generally, you can request to cancel PMI when you reach at least 20% equity in your home. You might reach the 20% equity threshold by making your payments on time per your amortization schedule for loan repayment.
Taxpayers have been able to deduct PMI in the past, and the Consolidated Appropriations Act extended the deduction into 2020 and 2021. The deduction is subject to qualified taxpayers' AGI limits and begins phasing out at $100,000 and ends at those with an AGI of $109,000 (regardless of filing status).
While the amount you pay for PMI can vary, you can expect to pay approximately between $30 and $70 per month for every $100,000 borrowed.
Whether you'll need PMI on the new loan will depend on your home's current value and the principal balance of the new mortgage. You can likely get rid of PMI if your equity has increased to at least 20% and you don't use a cash-out refinance.
A PMI tax deduction is only possible if you itemize your federal tax deductions. For anyone taking the standard tax deduction, PMI doesn't really matter, Han says. Roughly 86% of households are estimated to take the standard deduction, according to the Tax Foundation.
Getting rid of PMI is fairly straightforward: Once you accrue 20 percent equity in your home, either by making payments to reach that level or by increasing your home's value, you can request to have PMI removed.
Many loans have a “seasoning requirement” that requires you to wait at least two years before you can refinance to get rid of PMI. So if your loan is less than two years old, you can ask for a PMI-cancelling refi, but you're not guaranteed to get approval.
Typically, mortgage lenders want you to put 20 percent down on a home purchase because it lowers their lending risk. It's also a “rule” that most programs charge mortgage insurance if you put less than 20 percent down (though some loans avoid this).
FHA mortgage loans don't require PMI, but they do require an Up Front Mortgage Insurance Premium and a mortgage insurance premium (MIP) to be paid instead. Depending on the terms and conditions of your home loan, most FHA loans today will require MIP for either 11 years or the lifetime of the mortgage.
Mortgage insurance is required on most loans when borrowers put down less than 20 percent. All FHA loans require the borrower to pay two mortgage insurance premiums: Upfront mortgage insurance premium: 1.75 percent of the loan amount, paid when the borrower gets the loan.
On average, PMI costs range between 0.22% to 2.25% of your mortgage. How much you pay depends on two main factors: Your total loan amount: As a general rule, PMI expenses are higher for larger mortgages. Your credit score: Lenders typically charge borrowers with high credit scores lower PMI percentages.
No, PMI does not decrease over time. However, if you have a conventional mortgage, you'll be able to cancel PMI once your mortgage balance is equal to 80% of your home's value at the time of purchase.
The only way to cancel PMI is to refinance your mortgage. If you refinance your current loan's interest rate or refinance into a different loan type, you may be able to cancel your mortgage insurance.