The FHFA announced that the maximum conforming loan limits for mortgages acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will increase on January 1, 2018. To view the county loan limits in your area visit: www.fhfa.gov/DataTools/Downloads/Pages/Conforming-Loan-Limits.aspx. We saw an increase this year as well, but prior to that, there hadn’t been an increase since 2006.
For homes NOT in Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, & U.S. Virgin Islands, the new conforming loan amount is $453,100, up from $424,100 for a single unit.
Conforming, High balance:
-Denver MSA: $529,000
-El Paso county: $453,100
-Weld county: $453,100
The reason for the increase is that according to FHFA, on average, house prices have increased nationally in the third quarters of 2016 and 2017. Tight inventory has been one factor to driving up home prices here in Denver.
What if you’re looking at a home that would require a loan that exceeds the conforming loan limit? There are still options to take advantage of this increase in conforming loans. You can do a piggyback mortgage, which is where you have a first and second mortgage. Frequently, this is done to avoid Private Mortgage Insurance (insert PMI blog link), however, this could be an option if you’re over the conforming loan amount. You can do an 80% first mortgage, 10% second mortgage, and then put 10% down.
Milestone Home Mortgage LLC NMLS #2588937. Michael Shotnik NMLS: 218281, CO License: 100017466. Not licensed in Alaska or New York. To check license status of mortgage loan originator, visit D.O.R.A. and NMLS consumer access.
