2013 Mortgage Loan Limits for King County

rate changesThe 2013 mortgage loan limits for the  greater Seattle area are for the most part, the same as 2012.  The following loan limits apply for homes located in King, Snohomish or Pierce Counties.

Conforming:

1 Unit: $506,000

2 Unit: $647,750

3 Unit: $783,000

4 Unit: $973,100

FHA:

1 Unit: $567,500

2 Unit: $726,500

3 Unit: $878,150

4 Unit: $1,091,351

VA:  

$500,000.

NOTE: Technically speaking, VA loans do not have a “limit”. $500,000 is the highest loan amount for a “zero down” VA loan. If a qualified Veteran wishes to buy a home priced above $500,000, the down payment will be 25% of the difference between the sales price/appraised value (lowest of the two) and $500,000.  For example, a $600,000 sales price would have a down payment of $25,000 ($600,000 less $500,000 = $100,000 x 25% = $25,000).

You can find a complete list of loan limits by county for homes located in Washington state in the “footer” of my blog.

2008 Loan Limits to Return Soon

Part of the The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 includes bringing back the higher 2008 loan limits to certain areas.   Locally this means we may see high balance loan limits increase from $506,000 for single family dwellings in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties back to $567,500.   Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA will move forward and lenders will immediately follow.

Stay tuned.

Fannie Mae's Jumbo-Conforming Loan Guidelines

I started this post with the plans of announcing the pricing for the Jumbo-Conforming mortgages…however, I just don’t have enough facts to do so yet. It looks like Fannie Mae’s add to rate is 0.25%…however, lenders will most likely have their own add to rate as well. (So far, I’ve only seen a jumbo-conforming rate from one lender which was in the high 6 range for a 30 year). As soon as I have more data, I’ll let you know.

Here is some basic information from Fannie Mae regarding temporary Jumbo-Conforming mortgages (loan amounts from $417,001 – $567,500 for King, Pierce Snohomish Counties):

Purchase Mortgages/Principal Residence
Fixed Rate: Max LTV/CLTV 90%. Minimum Mid-Score LTV>80%: 700 / LTV = or <80%: 660.
ARMs: Max LTV/CLTV 80%. Minimum Mid-Score: 660%

Limited Cash Out Refi (Limited cash out means you can recieve a maximum of $2000 cash back at closing).
Fixed/ARMs: Max LTV 75%/Max CLTV 95%. Minimum Mid-Score: 660
Cash out refinances are not eligible (this includes paying off a second mortgage with a refinance, which is considered “cash out”). Update 4/7/2008: Fannie Mae just issued clarification on this guideline: they will now treat paying off a purchase money second as a limited cash out refinance.

*Full doc only.
*2 months reserves (PITI) are required for primary residence.
*45% maximum DTI ratio.
*ARMS are qualified on the fully amortized PITI at the higher of the note rate or fully indexed rate.
*Limited to four financed properties, including the borrower’s principal residence.

Remember, this coach turns back into a pumpkin on December 31, 2008.

Lenders will start pricing “jumbo conforming” anytime…stay tuned!