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Home Equity Let the Market Eliminate Your Private Mortgage Insurance By Charles Essmeier

In decades past, most people who were interested in obtaining a home loan were required to put down at least 20% of the purchase price. Those days are gone, and as home prices have risen faster than incomes, the average down payment required by lenders has dropped. In fact, it is often possible to buy a home with no down payment at all. Nationally, the average down payment is a 3%. Its nice to be able to buy a home with such a small amount of ready cash, but there is a downside if the down payment is less than 20%, the lender requires that private mortgage insurance (PMI) be added to the house note.

No one likes to pay PMI; the payment doesnt go towards paying off the house and the payments arent tax deductible. And the PMI payments arent trivial; the monthly PMI payment on a home priced at the U.S. median price of $206,000 with a 3% down payment is $129. Lenders require that borrowers pay PMI until the borrowed amount becomes less than 80% of the value of the home. In years past, this has meant that homeowners had to pay PMI until they had paid enough of the loan balance to reduce the debt to less than 80%. Times have changed, however, and many homeowners may be eligible for a faster way to avoid the monthly PMI payments.

The exploding real estate market has driven home prices higher than ever. Not only are the prices high, but the rate at which they are increasing is astonishing. In some parts of the country, home prices have doubled or even tripled in the last five years alone. The savvy homeowner should keep an eye on the price of housing in their local market, as the equity in his or her home may rise above 20% through market appreciation alone. In most markets, this is often happening quickly enough that homeowners may be able to eliminate PMI less than two years after purchase, even if they put a minimum amount of money down on the home.

A home appraisal is required to establish the equity to debt ratio of the loan, and this typically costs several hundred dollars. As that figure represents only a few months PMI payments, most everyone would be glad to pay for an appraisal. Before doing so, contact your lender, as some lenders require PMI for a specific length of time before it can be dropped. No one likes to pay for private mortgage insurance, and thanks to an unusually aggressive real estate market, few homebuyers today should have to pay it for very long.


Copyright 2005 by Retro Marketing.

Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including End-Your-Debt.com, a Website devoted to debt consolidation and credit counseling information and HomeEquityHelp.net, a site devoted to information on mortgages and home equity loans.




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Private Mortgage Insurance Your Rights and Responsibilities
An often overlooked cost of buying a new home is private mortgage insurance, usually simply called PMI. The basic idea behind PMI is simple. When a home buyer buys a house with less than 20% of the homes value as a down payment, the mortgage lender assumes a larger risk. In most cases, the lender ... more...

Ending Your Private Mortgage Insurance Early
Private mortgage insurance, or PMI, is the safety net of the lender. PMI benefits lenders because it guarantees payment on the balance of loans not covered by the sale of foreclosed properties.If a borrower makes a down payment of 20% of the cost of the home, the lender can generally trust that he ... more...

Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI)
If your down payment on a home is less than 20 percent of the appraised value or sale price, you must obtain private mortgage insurance, known as PMI, with your lender. This will enable you to obtain a mortgage with a lower down payment because your lender is now protected against any default on ... more...

Private Mortgage Insurance Basics
Will you be asked to pay Private Mortgage Insurance, or PMI? Most lenders will require you to carry PMI if you cannot put 20% or more of your loan amount forward as a down payment. PMI protects the LENDER in case you default on your payments. PMI does not protect you, the borrower. The lender will ... more...


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