Have equity in your home? Want a lower payment? An appraisal from Appraisal Connect, LLC can help you get rid of your PMI.It's typically understood that a 20% down payment is common when getting a mortgage. Because the risk for the lender is usually only the difference between the home value and the amount due on the loan, the 20% supplies a nice buffer against the charges of foreclosure, reselling the home, and regular value fluctuationson the chance that a borrower doesn't pay. During the recent mortgage upturn of the last decade, it was widespread to see lenders commanding down payments of 10, 5 or often 0 percent. A lender is able to manage the additional risk of the small down payment with Private Mortgage Insurance or PMI. PMI takes care of the lender in the event a borrower defaults on the loan and the market price of the property is lower than what is owed on the loan. PMI can be costly to a borrower because the $40-$50 a month per $100,000 borrowed is lumped into the mortgage payment and many times isn't even tax deductible. Contradictory to a piggyback loan where the lender consumes all the damages, PMI is favorable for the lender because they collect the money, and they receive payment if the borrower defaults. 
Does your monthly mortgage payment include PMI? Contact us, you may be able to save money by removing your PMI. How buyers can prevent bearing the expense of PMIThe Homeowners Protection Act of 1998 requires the lenders on nearly all loans to automatically terminate the PMI when the principal balance of the loan reaches 78 percent of the initial loan amount. Keen home owners can get off the hook a little earlier. The law states that, at the request of the homeowner, the PMI must be dropped when the principal amount equals just 80 percent. Since it can take countless years to reach the point where the principal is just 20% of the original loan amount, it's important to know how your home has appreciated in value. After all, all of the appreciation you've obtained over the years counts towards abolishing PMI. So why pay it after your loan balance has fallen below the 80% threshold? Even when nationwide trends indicate plummeting home values, be aware that real estate is local. Your neighborhood may not be heeding the national trends and/or your home could have secured equity before things calmed down. The hardest thing for most homeowners to know is just when their home's equity rises above the 20% point. An accredited, licensed real estate appraiser can surely help. As appraisers, it's our job to keep up with the market dynamics of our area. At Appraisal Connect, LLC, we're experts at analyzing value trends in Shelby Twp, Macomb County and surrounding areas, and we know when property values have risen or declined. When faced with data from an appraiser, the mortgage company will usually remove the PMI with little effort. At that time, the home owner can delight in the savings from that point on.
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