Let Northern Nevada Appraisal Services, LLC help you determine if you can cancel your PMIIt's widely understood that a 20% down payment is accepted when buying a house. Since the risk for the lender is usually only the difference between the home value and the amount due on the loan, the 20% adds a nice cushion against the charges of foreclosure, reselling the home, and regular value variationsin the event a borrower defaults. During the recent mortgage boom of the last decade, it was common to see lenders taking down payments of 10, 5 or sometimes 0 percent. A lender is able to handle the increased risk of the reduced down payment with Private Mortgage Insurance or PMI. PMI covers the lender in the event a borrower doesn't pay on the loan and the worth of the house is lower than what is owed on the loan. PMI can be costly to a borrower in that the $40-$50 a month per $100,000 borrowed is lumped into the mortgage payment and many times isn't even tax deductible. Contradictory to a piggyback loan where the lender absorbs all the damages, PMI is money-making for the lender because they acquire the money, and they get the money if the borrower doesn't pay. ![]() Does your monthly mortgage payment include PMI? Contact us, you may be able to save money by removing your PMI. How can home buyers avoid bearing the cost of PMI?With the utilization of The Homeowners Protection Act of 1998, on nearly all loans lenders are obligated to automatically terminate the PMI when the principal balance of the loan reaches 78 percent of the beginning loan amount. Acute homeowners can get off the hook sooner than expected. The law promises that, upon request of the homeowner, the PMI must be abandoned when the principal amount reaches only 80 percent. It can take many years to reach the point where the principal is only 20% of the initial amount of the loan, so it's essential to know how your home has grown in value. After all, every bit of appreciation you've obtained over time counts towards abolishing PMI. So why pay it after your loan balance has fallen below the 80% threshold? Your neighborhood might not be minding the national trends and/or your home could have gained equity before things calmed down, so even when nationwide trends predict decreasing home values, you should understand that real estate is local. The difficult thing for many home owners to know is just when their home's equity rises above the 20% point. An accredited, licensed real estate appraiser can surely help. As appraisers, it's our job to know the market dynamics of our area. At Northern Nevada Appraisal Services, LLC, we know when property values have risen or declined. We're experts at pinpointing value trends in RENO, Washoe County and surrounding areas. When faced with data from an appraiser, the mortgage company will generally do away with the PMI with little effort. At which time, the homeowner can delight in the savings from that point on.
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