Let Country Manor help you figure out if you can cancel your PMI

It's largely known that a 20% down payment is the standard when buying a house. The lender's risk is often only the difference between the home value and the sum remaining on the loan, so the 20% supplies a nice cushion against the costs of foreclosure, selling the home again, and regular value changes on the chance that a purchaser doesn't pay.

The market was working with down payments as low as 10, 5 and often 0 percent during the mortgage boom of the mid 2000s. A lender is able to endure the added risk of the low down payment with Private Mortgage Insurance or PMI. This additional policy covers the lender if a borrower doesn't pay on the loan and the worth of the home is less than the balance of the loan.

PMI can be expensive to a borrower in that the $40-$50 a month per $100,000 borrowed is bundled into the mortgage monthly payment and oftentimes isn't even tax deductible. It's money-making for the lender because they obtain the money, and they get the money if the borrower doesn't pay, different from a piggyback loan where the lender absorbs all the costs.

Does your monthly mortgage payment include PMI? Contact us, you may be able to save money by removing your PMI.

How can a home buyer prevent paying PMI?

The Homeowners Protection Act of 1998 requires the lenders on most loans to automatically stop the PMI when the principal balance of the loan equals 78 percent of the beginning loan amount. Keen homeowners can get off the hook beforehand. The law stipulates that, upon request of the home owner, the PMI must be released when the principal amount equals just 80 percent.

It can take countless years to get to the point where the principal is just 20% of the initial amount of the loan, so it's crucial to know how your home has appreciated in value. After all, all of the appreciation you've achieved over time counts towards dismissing PMI. So why should you pay it after your loan balance has fallen below the 80% threshold? Your neighborhood may not be adhering to the national trends and/or your home may have acquired equity before things simmered down, so even when nationwide trends indicate plummeting home values, you should understand that real estate is local.

The toughest thing for many home owners to understand is just when their home's equity goes over the 20% point. An accredited, licensed real estate appraiser can definitely help. As appraisers, it's our job to understand the market dynamics of our area. At Country Manor, we know when property values have risen or declined. We're masters at analyzing value trends in Medina, Medina County and surrounding areas. Faced with figures from an appraiser, the mortgage company will often eliminate the PMI with little anxiety. At which time, the home owner can delight in the savings from that point on.

Want to learn more about PMI and the Homeowners Protection Act? Click this link:
Cancellation of Private Mortgage Insurance: Federal Law May Save You Hundreds of Dollars Each Year