Current Mortgage Rates

Saturday, November 21, 2009



PMI is insurance that lenders require for borrowers seeking loans of more than 80% of a home's purchase price. PMI protects the lender if default should occur, and enables home buyers with down payments of less than 20% to purchase homes. Generally, if you put down 20% or more, you won't need PMI.

Here's how PMI works:
  1. You have a 5% downpayment.
  2. The lender wants to finance 80% or less of the home's value, since studies show that buyers who put less down are more likely to default.
  3. The lender secures a private mortgage insurance policy for you and closes on the loan. You pay for the PMI policy at closing or (most often) you pay a fee with each monthly loan payment.
  4. If you default, the lender receives the 15% you did not pay at closing.
Once your mortgage loan's loan to value ratio falls below 80 percent, you can eliminate PMI. On a $100,000 home, you would need at least $20,000 in equity to qualify. Contact your mortgage loan lender for details, as the lender will not cancel PMI automatically. You may have to send a written request and get a property appraisal to verify the value of your home.



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Current Mortgage Rates*

Loan Type
National Average
30-yr. fixed4.75%
30-yr. fixed jumbo5.25%
15-yr. fixed4.25%
15-yr. fixed jumbo4.75%
7/1 ARM4.38%
5/1 ARM4.00%
3/1 ARM4.00%
1-yr. ARM3.75%
1-yr. LIBOR ARM4.38%
10/1 ARM4.62%
*Mortgage Rates Updated: 11/21/2009