Enter Government-Backed Loan Government-backed loans, such as Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans or Veterans Affairs (VA) loans often have lower down payment requirements and may not require PMI. However, these loans have their own eligibility criteria and may have other fees.
USDA loans require 0% down payment and the minimum required credit score is 640. Also, they do not require PMI, but rather an annual fee that is usually much lower than most mortgage insurance. USDA loans are only available in areas that are less dense in terms of population, but many suburban areas are eligible.
Private mortgage insurance (PMI) is a type of mortgage insurance you might be required to buy if you take out a conventional loan with a down payment of less than 20 percent of the purchase price. PMI protects the lender—not you—if you stop making payments on your loan.
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.
Getting rid of PMI is pretty simple. All a borrower has to do is pay down the loan's principal balance to 80% or lower of the home's original appraised value, or to 80% of the home's current market value. All this means is that a borrower must show they have at least 20% equity in the property.
See if your lender offers piggyback loans: A piggyback loan, also known as an 80/10/10 or combination mortgage, takes the form of two loans: one for 80 percent of the home's price, the other for 10 percent of the home's price. You'll then pay 10 percent as a down payment. The upside: You won't pay PMI.
If you take out a conventional mortgage and you can pay 20% or more on the down payment, you can effectively avoid being required to take out PMI along with your mortgage.
An FHA loan may be a better option if you have a lower credit score, a higher DTI ratio, or less money saved for a down payment. On the other hand, a conventional loan may work better if your finances are sound and you can qualify for favorable loan terms.
Private mortgage insurance rates typically range from 0.19% to 2.25% of your mortgage. PMI rates depend on your credit scores, loan-to-value ratio and debt-to-income ratio, among other factors.
If you buy a $300,000 home, you could be paying somewhere between $600 – $6,000 per year in mortgage insurance. This cost is broken into monthly installments to make it more affordable. In this example, you're likely looking at paying $50 – $500 per month.
If the borrower is current on mortgage payments, PMI must be cancelled automatically once the LTV reaches 78 percent based on the original amortization schedule or when the midpoint of the amortization period is reached (i.e., 15 years on a 30-year mortgage).
Lenders require borrowers to pay PMI when they can't come up with a 20% down payment on a home. PMI is usually included in the monthly payment. PMI can be removed once a borrower pays down enough of the mortgage's principal.
The Bottom Line. PMI is expensive. Unless you think you can get 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.
“Conventional loans have higher minimum requirements than FHA and require a larger down payment,” Yates said. “Sellers prefer a buyer with conventional financing over FHA financing because they feel the buyer is in a better financial position.”
FHA loans allow lower credit scores and require less elapsed time for major credit problems. Conventional loans, however, may require less paperwork and offer better options to avoid costly mortgage insurance premiums.
What is required for FHA loan qualification? First, we'll give you a quick overview, then we'll drill down into each of these FHA loan requirements: Credit score: Minimum credit score of 580 (or 500 with a higher down payment) Down payment: 3.5 percent (or 10 percent with a credit score between 500 and 579)
Put 10% Down with No PMI by Using a Piggyback Loan
A piggyback loan, or a 80/10/10 mortgage, allows you to finance 80% of a home through a mortgage. Then, you put down 10% in cash. The other 10% required to make up a 20% down payment comes from a second loan, worth 10% of the home's value.
No-PMI conventional loan: To avoid private mortgage insurance (PMI), a $60,000 down payment (20% down) is necessary.
Yes. You have the right to ask your servicer to cancel PMI on the date the principal balance of your mortgage is scheduled to fall to 80 percent of the original value of your home. The first date you can make the request should appear on your PMI disclosure form, which you received along with your mortgage.
If you can easily afford it, you should probably put 20% down on a house. You'll avoid paying for private mortgage insurance, and you'll have a lower loan amount and smaller monthly payments to worry about. You could save a lot of money in the long run.
FHA loans are mortgages insured by the U.S. government's Federal Housing Administration. The insurance allows lenders to offer qualifying terms that are less strict than conventional mortgages. That means that homebuyers (particularly first-time buyers) can more easily qualify for a mortgage.
The type of mortgage. PMI may cost more for an adjustable-rate mortgage than a fixed-rate mortgage. Because the rate can go up with an adjustable-rate mortgage, the loan is riskier than a fixed-rate loan, so PMI tends to be higher.
Most people stop paying PMI when they've gained enough equity in their homes after paying down the mortgage for a number of years. You can also cancel PMI if your home value increases earlier than you would have been able to, but you'll need to get an official appraisal showing what your home is worth.
A “piggyback” second mortgage is a home equity loan or home equity line of credit (HELOC) that is made at the same time as your main mortgage. Its purpose is to allow borrowers with low down payment savings to borrow additional money in order to qualify for a main mortgage without paying for private mortgage insurance.