KO Appraisal
Napa · San Diego County

PMI Removal in Napa

A current-value appraisal used to show a lender that the loan balance has fallen far enough below the property’s value to cancel private mortgage insurance.

What Napa changes about this appraisal

Napa is a small county whose land economy is dominated by a single agricultural product, and that fact reaches into almost every valuation problem here.

The client is not really the borrower. It is the lender’s servicing department, and it applies its investor’s rules. The appraisal has to be ordered and formatted the way that servicer accepts, which is why homeowners who order one independently sometimes find it rejected.

Why the combination matters An appraisal is only as good as its comparables. For pmi removal work in Napa, that means drawing evidence from Napa itself wherever the data supports it, and documenting the reasoning whenever it does not, which is precisely what a reviewer, an opposing expert, or an assessment appeals board will probe first.

The rules that apply

Homeowners Protection Act of 1998, 12 U.S.C. §4901 et seq., The federal statute governing private mortgage insurance on conventional loans. It creates two thresholds: cancellation on borrower request at 80% loan-to-value, and automatic termination at 78%.

"Original value", the point everyone misses, Both thresholds are measured against ORIGINAL value, defined as the lesser of the purchase price or the appraised value when the loan was made. Not current market value. This means appreciation alone does not give you a statutory right to cancel, no matter how much the property has gone up. A great deal of published advice on this is simply wrong.

Where an appraisal does help under the HPA, On a borrower-requested cancellation the holder may require evidence that the property value has NOT DECLINED below its original value, and that no subordinate liens exist. That is a real appraisal need, but the question being answered is "has it held its value", not "how much has it gained".

Cancelling on appreciation. An investor program, not a right, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac operate their own programs allowing cancellation based on current value, subject to seasoning periods and their own LTV thresholds. Those are investor guidelines your servicer chooses to apply, not HPA entitlements, and the terms differ by investor and change over time. Ask your servicer which program applies before ordering anything.

Conventional only, FHA is a different system, The HPA governs private mortgage insurance on conventional loans. FHA mortgage insurance premium follows separate HUD rules, and on many post-2013 FHA loans the premium runs for the life of the loan and cannot be appraised away at all. If your loan is FHA, confirm with your servicer before spending money on an appraisal.

Working in Napa

Kevin O'Brien holds a California Certified General Real Estate Appraiser (#3005065), which carries no property-type or value limitation, and works throughout San Diego County and throughout the market areas listed on this site. Standard turnaround is 1–3 weeks.

Common questions

My home went up a lot in value. Can I cancel PMI with a new appraisal?
Possibly, but not under the federal statute, which is where most advice goes wrong. The Homeowners Protection Act measures both its thresholds against the ORIGINAL value, so appreciation alone creates no statutory right to cancel. What can work is your investor’s own program: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac both allow value-based cancellation subject to seasoning and their own thresholds. Ask your servicer which applies to your loan before ordering an appraisal.
Then why would I need an appraisal at all?
Two situations. Under the HPA, when you request cancellation at 80% the holder may require evidence that the property has not DECLINED below its original value. That is an appraisal. And under an investor’s appreciation program, a current appraisal is the evidence the whole request rests on.
Can I order the appraisal myself?
Often not, and this is where homeowners waste money. Many servicers require the appraisal be ordered through them or from an approved panel so the appraiser is independent of the borrower. Confirm the requirement before engaging anyone, including me.
I have an FHA loan. Does this apply?
No. The HPA governs private mortgage insurance on conventional loans. FHA mortgage insurance premium runs under separate HUD rules, and on many loans originated after 2013 it lasts the life of the loan and cannot be removed by appraisal at any value. Check with your servicer before spending anything.

Related

Next step

Tell me about the property.

Most assignments start with a short call, property type, the purpose of the appraisal, and the deadline you are working against. You get a fixed quote before any engagement, never contingent on the value reached.

Typical commercial fees range $2,000–$4,000. Residential and simpler assignments quote lower. Every engagement is quoted in advance, so the figure is known before work begins.

Call 760-685-8036residential Request a quote