Have equity in your home? Want a lower payment? An appraisal from Appraisal House, Inc. can help you get rid of your PMI.When purchasing a home, a 20% down payment is typically the standard. The lender's risk is often only the remainder between the home value and the amount remaining on the loan, so the 20% adds a nice buffer against the expenses of foreclosure, selling the home again, and natural value variations in the event a purchaser defaults. Lenders were accepting down payments down to 10, 5 and even 0 percent in the peak of last decade's mortgage boom. A lender is able to endure the added risk of the small down payment with Private Mortgage Insurance or PMI. This supplemental plan takes care of the lender if a borrower doesn't pay on the loan and the value of the home is less than what is owed on the loan. Since the $40-$50 a month per $100,000 borrowed is lumped into the mortgage monthly payment and frequently isn't even tax deductible, PMI can be expensive to a borrower. It's favorable for the lender because they secure the money, and they get paid if the borrower is unable to pay, separate from a piggyback loan where the lender consumes all the losses. 
Does your monthly mortgage payment include PMI? Contact us, you may be able to save money by removing your PMI. How can a homeowner keep from paying PMI?The Homeowners Protection Act of 1998 makes the lenders on nearly all loans to automatically eliminate the PMI when the principal balance of the loan reaches 78 percent of the primary loan amount. Smart home owners can get off the hook a little early. The law states that, upon request of the homeowner, the PMI must be abandoned when the principal amount equals just 80 percent. It can take many 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 increased in value. After all, every bit of appreciation you've accomplished over the years counts towards dismissing PMI. So why should you pay it after the balance of your loan has dropped below the 80% mark? Despite the fact that nationwide trends forecast plunging home values, realize that real estate is local. Your neighborhood may not be following the national trends and/or your home might have gained equity before things calmed down. The difficult thing for most home owners to know 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 keep up with the market dynamics of our area. At Appraisal House, Inc., we're experts at recognizing value trends in Destin, Okaloosa County and surrounding areas, and we know when property values have risen or declined. When faced with figures from an appraiser, the mortgage company will generally remove the PMI with little effort. At that time, the homeowner can enjoy the savings from that point on.
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