Clearfork Appraisals can help you remove your Private Mortgage InsuranceA 20% down payment is typically accepted when buying a house. Because the liability for the lender is usually only the difference between the home value and the amount remaining on the loan, the 20% provides a nice buffer against the charges of foreclosure, reselling the home, and typical value fluctuationsin the event a purchaser is unable to pay. During the recent mortgage boom of the mid 2000s, it became common to see lenders commanding down payments of 10, 5 or even 0 percent. How does a lender manage the added risk of the small down payment? The answer is Private Mortgage Insurance or PMI. This supplementary plan takes care of the lender in the event a borrower doesn't pay on the loan and the value of the house is lower than what the borrower still owes on the loan. Since the $40-$50 a month per $100,000 borrowed is rolled into the mortgage monthly payment and oftentimes isn't even tax deductible, PMI can be pricey to a borrower. It's beneficial for the lender because they collect the money, and they receive payment if the borrower doesn't pay, unlike a piggyback loan where the lender absorbs all the losses. 
Does your monthly mortgage payment include PMI? Contact us, you may be able to save money by removing your PMI. How homebuyers can prevent bearing the expense of PMIThe Homeowners Protection Act of 1998 requires the lenders on nearly all loans to automatically cancel the PMI when the principal balance of the loan equals 78 percent of the original loan amount. Smart homeowners can get off the hook a little early. The law promises that, upon request of the home owner, the PMI must be abandoned when the principal amount equals just 80 percent. Since it can take countless years to get to the point where the principal is just 20% of the initial amount borrowed, it's essential to know how your home has increased in value. After all, all of the appreciation you've accomplished over time counts towards dismissing PMI. So why pay it after your loan balance has fallen below the 80% threshold? Your neighborhood may not be heeding the national trends and/or your home might have gained equity before things cooled off, so even when nationwide trends hint at plummeting home values, you should realize that real estate is local. A certified, licensed real estate appraiser can help homeowners understand just when their home's equity rises above the 20% point, as it's a difficult thing to know. It is an appraiser's job to keep up with the market dynamics of their area. At Clearfork Appraisals, we're experts at recognizing value trends in Fort Worth, Tarrant 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 usually cancel the PMI with little anxiety. At which time, the home owner can retain the savings from that point on.
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