PMI Removal Calculator

When PMI drops off: the 80% and 78% rules

The Homeowners Protection Act (12 U.S.C. 4901 and following) covers conventional loans on a single-family principal residence closed on or after July 29, 1999. It sets three dates. At 80% of the original value you may request cancellation, either on the amortization schedule or earlier if extra payments got you there. At 78%, on the schedule alone, the servicer must terminate PMI automatically if you are current. And if neither has happened, PMI ends the month after the midpoint of the term, 15 years into a 30-year loan, again if you are current. The CFPB adds that for loans owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, the investor's cancellation rules cannot be less favorable to you than these.

"Original value" is the lower of the contract sales price and the appraised value when you bought; after a refinance it is the appraised value used for the refinance. A rise in your home's market value does not move the 78% automatic date, which is why the calculator asks for the original value, not today's. Many servicers will also cancel PMI based on a new appraisal that shows enough equity, but that is lender policy, not the federal rule, and the terms vary by lender.

A worked example, and what extra payments do

Buy a $400,000 home with 10% down: a $360,000 loan at 6.5% for 30 years, first payment January 2025. The balance falls to $320,000 (80%) with payment 95, in November 2032, and to $312,000 (78%) with payment 109, in January 2034. At $150 a month, waiting for the automatic date costs 14 extra payments, $2,100 of PMI you could have asked to stop.

Extra principal shortens the road to 80% because the request can be based on actual payments, but the automatic 78% date stays on the original schedule, so you have to ask. The extra payment calculator shows what the same extra money does to your payoff date and interest.

How to request cancellation, and the loans these rules do not cover

Send the request in writing. The servicer must grant it if you have a good payment history and are current, you certify there are no junior liens such as a second mortgage or HELOC, and you can show, for example with an appraisal if asked, that the value has not fallen below the original value. A good payment history means no payment 30 or more days late in the past 12 months and none 60 or more days late in the 12 months before that. Once PMI is cancelled or terminated, any unearned premiums must be returned to you within 45 days.

Loans the lender classed as high risk are exempt from the 80% and 78% rules and only get the midpoint termination. FHA and VA loans are not covered at all: FHA mortgage insurance follows HUD's rules, with an up-front premium and a monthly premium, and the CFPB says to ask your servicer about cancelling it. If you refinance an FHA loan into a conventional one, the rules on this page apply to the new loan.

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