Find out whether your loan is actually jumbo in your county, what the rate premium costs you, and how much more down payment would keep you conforming.
The 2026 conforming limit is $832,750 in most counties and $1,249,125 in high-cost ones, so plenty of buyers who expect a jumbo do not need one. Switch counties, set your own jumbo premium, and see the monthly payment, the exact dollars over the line, and the down payment that erases it.
Principal, interest, property tax and insurance at each down payment, holding your 6.75% quote fixed. The drop at 30.6% is the moment the loan falls to $832.8K and the 0.25% jumbo premium stops applying: the payment falls further than the extra principal alone explains.
Direct answers to the most common questions, in plain language. Skim if you're in a hurry; dig deeper below.
Any loan above your county limit: $832,750 in most counties, $1,249,125 in high-cost ones.
FHFA sets the conforming loan limit every year. For 2026 the baseline is $832,750 for a one-unit home, and designated high-cost counties go up to $1,249,125. Anything above your own county's number is a jumbo loan and cannot be sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
Check your county first: the high-cost ceiling is $1,249,125.
Plenty of buyers who think they need a jumbo do not. Coastal California, the New York metro, the DC area, Alaska and Hawaii carry the high-cost limit of $1,249,125, so a $960,000 loan is jumbo in a standard county and plainly conforming in a high-cost one. Flip the county switch in the calculator to see both verdicts.
Down payment needed = home price minus your county limit.
On a $1.2M home in a standard county, the loan has to come down to $832,750, so you need $367,250 down (30.6%), which is $127,250 more than a 20% deposit. The calculator computes that exact figure for your price and county and shows what the lower payment looks like.
Usually a small premium, often 0.1% to 0.4%, and sometimes zero.
The historic jumbo premium of half a point has largely collapsed, and some banks price jumbos at or below conforming for strong borrowers. The calculator lets you set the premium yourself and shows the monthly and lifetime cost of whatever spread your lender quotes, so quote both options when you are near the line.
DTI under 43%, plus 6 to 12 months of payments in liquid reserves.
Jumbo underwriting typically wants a debt-to-income ratio under 43% (often under 38%), a credit score of 700 or better, and 6 to 12 months of mortgage payments in liquid assets after closing. Both the DTI target and the reserve requirement are adjustable inputs here.
The mechanics in short answers. No jargon, no upsell.
The conforming limit is reset annually by FHFA. For 2026, it's $832,750 nationally, with high-cost area increases up to $1,249,125.
Jumbo loans stay on the lender's books or get sold to private investors. That means stricter underwriting and often higher reserve requirements.
Historically jumbos were 0.5%+ above conforming. In 2020–2025, that gap collapsed and sometimes inverted as banks competed for wealthy clients.
Lenders typically require 6–12 months of P&I in liquid assets after closing, proof you can weather an income disruption.
Worked example: A $1.2M home with 20% down leaves a $960,000 loan. In a standard county that is $127,250 over the $832,750 limit, so it is a jumbo: a 6.75% quote plus a 0.25% premium gives 7.00%, P&I of about $6,387, and roughly $7,687 a month once 1.1% property tax ($1,100) and $2,400/yr insurance ($200) are added. Put $367,250 down instead (30.6%, or $127,250 more) and the loan lands exactly at $832,750, the premium disappears, and the payment drops to about $6,701. The identical loan in a high-cost county is conforming from the start and costs about $7,527.
FHFA publishes a limit for every county, so confirm yours before accepting jumbo pricing. The jumbo rate premium varies by lender and week and is sometimes zero or negative, which is why it is an input here rather than a fixed number. Reserve months and the DTI target are typical underwriting asks, not universal rules. Everything runs locally in your browser.
Designed so anyone can model their situation in under a minute, with or without a finance background.
Conforming, or jumbo by an exact dollar amount over your county's 2026 limit.
One switch between the $832,750 baseline and the $1,249,125 high-cost ceiling.
The down payment that puts your loan right at the limit, and how much more that is.
Your jumbo rate premium priced monthly and over the whole term, on the same loan.
Income at your DTI target plus the months of payments a jumbo lender wants liquid.
Up to three named scenarios side by side, with a shareable link and a PDF report.
Everything you might ask before, during, or after using this tool.
No. The baseline 2026 limit is $832,750, but high-cost counties (large parts of California, NY metro, Hawaii, DC area) get up to 150% of baseline, $1,249,125. Check the FHFA county-level limits for your exact area.
Historically yes, by about 0.5%. In recent years that gap has frequently closed or even inverted, as banks aggressively compete for high-income borrowers. Always shop both jumbo and conforming options if you're near the line.
Yes, a "80/10/10" structure (80% first, 10% HELOC, 10% down) keeps your first mortgage under the conforming limit. Worth it when the rate spread between jumbo and conforming is large; less attractive when spreads are tight.
Most jumbo lenders don't offer PMI; they prefer 20%+ down. Lender-paid mortgage insurance (LPMI) is sometimes available with a higher rate. The cleanest path is 20% down.
Typical jumbo underwriting wants 700+ for the best rates. Some lenders go to 680, but expect rate add-ons and stricter reserve requirements. Above 740 generally gets best pricing.
Yes: fewer programs, tighter DTI requirements, larger reserves, and full income documentation. Self-employed borrowers especially face more scrutiny: typically 2 years of tax returns, P&L, and bank statements.
Yes. Standard rate-and-term and cash-out refis are available. Some lenders specialize in jumbo refis. Closing costs are usually higher in dollar terms (proportional to loan size) but similar as a percentage.
Yes, interest is deductible on up to $750,000 of acquisition debt for loans originated after Dec 15, 2017 ($1M for older loans). Interest on the portion above the cap is not deductible.
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The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) sets the conforming loan limit each year. For 2026, that's $832,750 in most US counties.
In designated high-cost areas (much of California, NY metro, and DC), the limit scales up to 150% of baseline, $1,249,125. Alaska and Hawaii use that same $1,249,125 figure as their baseline.
Anything above your county's limit is a jumbo loan. It's held on a bank's books or sold to private investors instead of bundled into Fannie/Freddie securities.
Higher credit score requirement: 700+ typical for best pricing.
Lower debt-to-income ratio: most lenders cap at 43%, prefer under 38%.
Down payment: 10% is the floor, 20% is standard, 25%+ for the largest loans.
Cash reserves: 6–12 months of mortgage payments in liquid assets after closing is the norm.
Documentation: full income docs always; no "stated income" or low-doc programs.
Pre-2015: jumbo rates were 0.5%+ above conforming rates, a classic risk premium.
2015–2020: gap compressed as banks chased high-net-worth customers.
2020–2024: jumbos often matched or BEAT conforming rates briefly, which is unusual historically.
2025–2026: small premium has returned (typically 0.1–0.4%), but still much smaller than the historic norm.
Always quote both options if you're near the line; the spread varies week to week.
Take a first mortgage at exactly the conforming limit, a second mortgage (HELOC or fixed) for the next chunk, and put 10–20% down.
Avoids the jumbo loan entirely; the first mortgage qualifies as conforming.
Worth it when conforming rates are meaningfully lower than jumbo rates AND the HELOC rate isn't absurd.
Adds complexity (two loans, two payments) and the HELOC is usually variable-rate; model the worst-case rate before committing.
Two short notes worth reading before you trust any number on this page.
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