Have equity in your home? Want a lower payment? An appraisal from Las Vegas Appraisal Service, Inc. can help you get rid of your PMI.

It's generally inferred that a 20% down payment is the standard when purchasing a home. The lender's liability is usually only the difference between the home value and the sum outstanding on the loan, so the 20% adds a nice cushion against the charges of foreclosure, reselling the home, and regular value variations on the chance that a purchaser doesn't pay.

During the recent mortgage boom of the last decade, it became customary to see lenders requiring down payments of 10, 5 or sometimes 0 percent. A lender is able to handle the additional risk of the low down payment with Private Mortgage Insurance or PMI. PMI guards the lender in case a borrower doesn't pay on the loan and the value of the house is less than the balance of the loan.

Since the $40-$50 a month per $100,000 borrowed is bundled into the mortgage monthly payment and often isn't even tax deductible, PMI can be pricey to a borrower. It's profitable for the lender because they obtain the money, and they get paid if the borrower is unable to pay, different from a piggyback loan where the lender takes in all the damages.

Does your monthly mortgage payment include PMI? Contact us, you may be able to save money by removing your PMI.

How can a buyer refrain from bearing the cost of PMI?

With the utilization of The Homeowners Protection Act of 1998, on nearly all loans lenders are forced to automatically stop the PMI when the principal balance of the loan reaches 78 percent of the original loan amount. Savvy homeowners can get off the hook a little earlier. The law stipulates that, upon request of the home owner, the PMI must be released when the principal amount reaches just 80 percent.

It can take countless years to reach the point where the principal is only 20% of the original amount borrowed, so it's crucial to know how your home has grown in value. After all, every bit of appreciation you've achieved over the years counts towards abolishing PMI. So why pay it after your loan balance has dropped below the 80% threshold? Your neighborhood might not be heeding the national trends and/or your home might have secured equity before things calmed down, so even when nationwide trends predict plunging home values, you should realize that real estate is local.

An accredited, licensed real estate appraiser can help homeowners understand just when their home's equity rises above the 20% point, as it's a hard thing to know. As appraisers, it's our job to keep up with the market dynamics of our area. At Las Vegas Appraisal Service, Inc., we're experts at determining value trends in Las Vegas, Clark County and surrounding areas, and we know when property values have risen or declined. Faced with information from an appraiser, the mortgage company will generally cancel the PMI with little trouble. At that time, the homeowner can retain the savings from that point on.

Want to learn more about PMI and the Homeowners Protection Act? Click this link:
Cancellation of Private Mortgage Insurance: Federal Law May Save You Hundreds of Dollars Each Year