Can I Remove Mortgage Insurance Without Refinancing?
You may be able to remove private mortgage insurance without refinancing. Learn the 80% request rule, 78% automatic termination, and how home value can affect your options.
Jason Herbert 5 min read 
Yes, you may be able to remove private mortgage insurance (PMI) from a conventional loan without refinancing. The answer depends on your loan type, mortgage balance, payment history, and whether you are asking based on your home’s original value or its current value.
That distinction matters if you have a mortgage rate you would rather keep. Before considering a new loan solely to remove mortgage insurance, find out what your current loan allows.
First, Check Which Kind of Mortgage Insurance You Have
PMI generally refers to private mortgage insurance on a conventional loan. FHA loans have mortgage insurance premiums, often called MIP, with different cancellation rules. VA loans generally do not have monthly mortgage insurance.
Look at your mortgage statement or closing documents, or ask your loan servicer which program you have. The servicer is the company that sends your mortgage statement and collects your payment. It handles a request to cancel mortgage insurance on your existing loan.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) explains that the PMI cancellation rules below apply to many conventional mortgages. FHA, VA, lender-paid mortgage insurance, and some other loan situations have different requirements.
When Can I Ask to Remove PMI Based on the Original Value?
For many conventional loans on a single-family primary residence, you can request PMI cancellation when your principal balance is scheduled to reach 80% of the home’s original value. You may also be able to request it sooner if extra principal payments bring the actual balance to that point.
For a purchase, “original value” generally means the lower of the purchase price or appraised value at the time you bought the home. If you refinanced, it generally means the appraised value used for that refinance. A later increase in your home’s market value does not change this particular 80% calculation.
The request must be in writing under the federal cancellation rules. You generally must be current, have a good payment history, certify that you have no second mortgage or other junior lien, and provide evidence that the property’s value has not fallen below its original value if the servicer requires it.
Those requirements are explained in the CFPB’s PMI cancellation guide. Your original PMI disclosure may also show the first scheduled date when you can request cancellation.
What Happens at 78%?
For many eligible conventional loans, the servicer generally must automatically terminate PMI when the principal balance is scheduled to reach 78% of the home’s original value, provided your payments are current.
The word scheduled matters. Paying extra principal may let you request cancellation earlier at 80%, but it does not necessarily move the automatic 78% date forward. If you are close to 80%, ask your servicer about making a request instead of simply waiting.
The CFPB also describes a midpoint termination rule for certain loans that have not otherwise reached their termination point. See its PMI guidance for the details.
What If My Home Has Increased in Value?
You may have another route. Some loan investors permit PMI removal based on the home’s current value, even when your balance has not reached 80% of its original value.
For example, under Fannie Mae’s servicing rules, a qualifying one-unit primary residence or second home generally needs a loan-to-value ratio of:
- 75% or less when the loan is between two and five years old; or
- 80% or less when the loan is more than five years old.
Fannie Mae has a possible exception to its two-year seasoning requirement when borrower-made improvements increased the property’s value, subject to its other requirements. Its servicer must obtain an acceptable property valuation, and payment-history requirements still apply.
Do not order your own appraisal first and assume the servicer will accept it. Ask the servicer what valuation process it requires, what it costs, and whether your loan is eligible.
A Simple Example
Suppose the original value of your home was $400,000.
- 80% of original value: $320,000. Reaching this balance may allow you to request PMI cancellation if you meet the other requirements.
- 78% of original value: $312,000. This is the general scheduled automatic termination point for many eligible conventional loans, if payments are current.
Now suppose your balance is $330,000 and your home may be worth $450,000 today. Your estimated loan-to-value ratio based on that possible current value is about 73.3%.
You have not yet reached $320,000 based on original value. But a current-value review might be worth asking about if your loan meets the applicable investor, age, payment-history, and valuation rules. Your estimate of the home’s value is not the servicer’s approved valuation.
Does This Work the Same Way for FHA Loans?
No. FHA mortgage insurance premium rules differ from conventional PMI rules. In particular, the conventional 80% request and 78% automatic termination rules should not be applied to an FHA loan.
For many FHA loans with case numbers assigned on or after June 3, 2013, paying the balance down or seeing your home value rise does not remove monthly MIP under the conventional PMI process. The scheduled MIP duration depends on the loan’s original terms, including its original loan-to-value ratio. Ask your servicer to confirm the rules for your specific FHA case. HUD explains the distinction here.
Refinancing into a conventional loan could be one option for some homeowners, but the new rate, closing costs, credit qualifications, and total payment need to be compared before making that decision.
What Should I Do Next?
Call or send a secure message to your mortgage servicer and ask:
- Is my loan conventional or FHA, and who owns or guarantees it?
- What is my original value and my current unpaid principal balance?
- What are my scheduled 80% request date and 78% automatic termination date, if applicable?
- Can I request cancellation based on extra principal payments or current property value?
- What payment history, documents, valuation, and fees would you require?
If you are weighing PMI cancellation against a refinance, I can help you compare the numbers. The goal is to understand the total cost and monthly payment, including any new rate and closing costs, before changing a loan that may already work well for you.
Jason Herbert | The Herbert Team | NMLS #633039
TheHerbertTeam.com | 760-715-3434
This article is educational. Mortgage insurance cancellation depends on your loan, servicer, investor, payment history, property, and applicable rules. It is not a guarantee of eligibility or a loan offer.
