Removing Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) from your Mortgage Payment

When you think of “mortgage insurance,” you may think of a type of life insurance that if you die, the mortgage on your house is paid off for the benefit of the survivors. Private Mortgage Insurance, known as PMI, is not that at all. PMI is insurance to protect the lender in the event the borrower defaults. PMI is usually required on conventional home loans where the down payment is less than 20%.

Without PMI, the risk to the lender would be higher, and lenders would not be as willing to commit as many funds towards low down payment programs. With PMI, conventional loan programs are available to buyers with as little as 3% down.

In rapidly appreciating markets, buying with as low a down payment as possible, makes a lot of sense.  When a market goes up 20% in a year, and you’re trying to save for a 20% down payment, you go backwards pretty quickly. In other words, you just can’t “out-save” an appreciating market like we have now. If you can afford the monthly payment, you can buy as soon as you have a 5% down payment, thanks to PMI.

Private Mortgage Insurance is not free. Lenders have access to different companies that underwrite PMI. PMI can be paid upfront, monthly or a combination. PMI can also be built into the interest rate. The bottom line is that it costs a little more to be able to buy with a low down payment.

Now for the good news. In an appreciating market, once the loan to value ratios fall to certain guidelines, the expense of PMI can be removed. If you think you can meet the guidelines, the first step is to contact your current lender. Here are the general guidelines:

1.  As you pay on your mortgage, the loan balance goes down a little each month. Once it is less than 80% of the original value, you can request the PMI be removed. If you have been paying extra toward your mortgage balance, it might reach that level quicker than you think. You can also analyze whether or not it would be good to pay the balance down today, to a level where it is less than 80%.

2. When the loan balance has reached 78% of the original value, PMI is supposed to be removed automatically. If you think you have reached this level and PMI has not been removed, be sure to contact your lender.

3. If you think the value of your home has gone up enough in the last two years, and that its current value places the loan at 80% loan to value or less, you can request the PMI be removed.  The lender would likely require an appraisal be done. Again, check with your current lender.

Other Ways to Remove PMI:

1. Pay down your loan balance. If you have been making extra payments toward principal, the loan might be paid down enough to qualify for PMI removal.
2. If you improve your home, you might be able to get an appraisal showing your home qualifies to have the PMI removed.
3. If values have gone up and rates have gone down, you might consider refinancing. You need to consider the costs of refinancing and the fact that you are starting over on a new loan.
4. Get a recast of a loan. Often a lender will do a recast. This can sometimes be done with fewer expenses than a refinance and leaves the remaining years on the loan in place.
5. Replace the current mortgage with an open-ended Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC).

Be sure to consult your mortgage loan officer and other financial advisors and work out a plan that is just right for you.

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