Solutions

If you have good credit, you can get into your home for as little as 3% down on qualification. However, if you don’t put 20% down, the lender will be required to add PMI to your mortgage payments. PMI, or Private Mortgage Insurance, protects the lender should a home buyer default on a home without a significant equity position.

Like any other insurance, the cost of PMI varies. A good rule of thumb is that PMI will typically equal 0.5-1% of your loan amount each year, but its paid monthly with your mortgage. For example, if you have a $600,000 loan your PMI would likely be in the range of $250-$500 per month. If you want to avoid monthly PMI, but can’t put 20% down on a home, talk to your Next Level mortgage specialist to see if a single premium upfront PMI makes sense for you.

Conventional loans do have limits. For 2023, that limit is $726,200. However, for certain high-cost markets (like Los Angeles), that limit may be a higher amount - up to $1,089,300 in 2023. If you’re buying a home that is more expensive than that, we’ve still got loan products that will work for you.

You can use your conventional loan to buy your primary residence, an additional home or investment property. This can be a single-family home, condo, or townhome. If you’re looking to get a mortgage on multi-family home, you can use this loan product for a 2–4-unit property as well.

It always depends on the situation, but if you have good credit, money to put down and don’t carry a lot of debt, a conventional loan is generally the best way to purchase your home. If your credit needs some work and/or you want to put less money down, an FHA loan might be better for you. Keep in mind if you are buying anything other than a primary residence, you won’t be able to use an FHA loan.