A wave of homeowners is trying to kill their private mortgage insurance before the rules shift again.
The stakes aren't small: PMI typically runs 0.3% to 1.5% of the original loan amount every year, which on a $400,000 mortgage can mean $3,600 annually in payments that protect the lender, not the borrower.
The catch is that getting rid of it isn't a matter of just asking.
Federal law sets hard floors, and lenders layer their own requirements on top. **The two paths: automatic and requested** Under the Homeowners Protection Act, your servicer must automatically cancel PMI on the date your loan balance is scheduled to hit 78% of the home's original value, provided you're current on payments.
That assumes you bought with a standard down payment and the loan is on its original amortization schedule.
The faster route is requesting cancellation once you reach 80% loan-to-value.
That usually requires a written request, a good payment history, and — this is where people get tripped up — a lender-approved appraisal or a broker price opinion confirming the home's current value.
For a borrower who bought in 2021 and watched their market surge, a new appraisal can push LTV well below the threshold years ahead of schedule.
For someone whose local market flattened, the same appraisal can end the conversation entirely. **Where the new friction is showing up** Servicers have gotten pickier about documentation.
Many now require the appraisal to be ordered through their own vendor network, with the borrower paying $400 to $800 upfront and no guarantee the estimate clears the bar.
Some investors, particularly on FHA loans, require a full refinance instead of simple cancellation — a much larger decision given where rates sit today.
Loans endorsed after June 2013 generally carry annual mortgage insurance for the life of the loan unless you refinance into a conventional product.
That's a distinction plenty of buyers didn't fully absorb at closing.
Servicers often require the request at least 30 days before the next billing cycle, and mid-month payments can throw off the LTV calculation they use.
Send the request in writing and keep a copy. **What to check before you call** Pull your original loan documents and confirm your loan type, the original value used at closing, and your current balance.
Then estimate your LTV both ways — using the original value and a realistic current value.
Ask your servicer three questions in writing: What is my current loan-to-value on your records, what appraisal process do you accept, and when is my automatic termination date?
Their answer to the last one is a fixed number you can plan around.
If the numbers work, the savings compound.
Dropping a $250 monthly PMI payment and redirecting it toward principal can shorten a 30-year loan by years. **Our take** PMI removal is one of the few household money moves where a little paperwork can produce a five-figure swing over the life of a loan.
The rules aren't new, but enforcement details and appraisal requirements keep moving — and most homeowners never revisit them after closing.
Final Thoughts
Pull your documents, get the LTV in writing, and put the request in motion before the next servicer policy update resets the clock.