For Howell buyers with a smaller down payment, and owners who pay mortgage insurance now: how conventional, FHA and VA loans handle mortgage insurance, and how monthly mortgage insurance can come off. Fidelity Residential is a direct, licensed mortgage lender with a New Jersey office on Route 36 in West Long Branch.
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Fidelity Residential · NMLS #103098 · Equal Housing Lender
Howell Township has about 53,900 residents and about 19,600 homes, according to the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey estimates for 2020 to 2024. An estimated 88.8 percent of occupied homes are lived in by their owners.
Most owners have a mortgage. Of about 17,000 owner-occupied homes, an estimated 67.7 percent, about 11,500 homes, have one.
Fidelity Residential is a direct mortgage lender licensed in New Jersey under a Residential Mortgage Lender License. Our local office is at 121 NJ-36, Suite 230, West Long Branch.
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020 to 2024. Estimates, not counts.
Each program has its own rules for the down payment, mortgage insurance and the kind of home. A loan officer can compare them for your situation.
A loan that is not insured by the government. Some programs for first-time and lower-income buyers allow a smaller down payment. With a smaller down payment the loan usually carries private mortgage insurance, and monthly mortgage insurance on a conventional loan is the only kind you can ask to remove.
Home purchase loansFHA loans accept smaller down payments and lower credit scores than most conventional loans. Every FHA loan carries two mortgage insurance premiums: an upfront premium, usually added to the loan, and an annual premium paid with your monthly payment. The home must be your main residence.
FHA loans in New JerseyFor eligible veterans, service members, Reserve and National Guard members and certain surviving spouses; VA, not the lender, decides eligibility. There is no monthly mortgage insurance. Most borrowers pay a one-time VA funding fee, which can be added to the loan; veterans receiving compensation for a service-connected disability, and some others, are exempt.
VA loansWith an FHA loan, a documented gift, or a down payment assistance program from a government agency that FHA allows, can help with the down payment; the assistance is usually a second loan with its own terms. See down payment assistance. Talk to a loan officer before you make an offer, so you know your price range and your cash to close.
On a conventional loan with a smaller down payment, mortgage insurance is usually required. It protects the lender, not you, if a borrower stops paying.
Three ways to pay for the same coverage. Monthly, as part of your mortgage payment; once, at closing, as a single premium; or built into the rate, where a higher rate pays for the coverage. The coverage is the same; what changes is who pays, when, and whether the cost can ever end.
Only one version ever ends. Monthly mortgage insurance on a conventional loan is the only kind you can remove. A single premium paid at closing is usually not refunded if you sell or refinance early, and a cost built into your rate stays for the life of the loan.
A seller credit. A credit from the seller can sometimes be put toward a single premium instead of the price, within the limits each loan program sets on what a seller may pay. That can remove the monthly premium and lower the payment, while a price cut keeps the loan smaller. Which to choose depends on how long you expect to stay, so ask before you write the offer.
FHA follows its own rules. The annual premium on an FHA loan ends after a set number of years with a larger down payment, and lasts for the life of the loan with a smaller one. Refinancing into a different loan later is one way some owners remove it.
For the full comparison, see Mortgage insurance: what it costs and who can pay it.
Some homeowners keep paying every month for coverage they could ask to remove. Your servicer, the company named on your monthly statement, has to tell you the right exists, but it will not act until you ask.
An FHA loan is different: its mortgage insurance follows FHA’s own rules. Refinancing into a different loan is one way some owners remove it; weigh what the refinance costs against the change in your payment. See refinancing.
Yes. Fidelity Residential is a dba of PFN Lending Group, Inc. (NMLS #103098), which holds a New Jersey Residential Mortgage Lender License. You can check the licence on NMLS Consumer Access (opens in a new tab).
Our office is at 121 NJ-36, Suite 230, West Long Branch, NJ 07764. Call 732-686-9999 to talk with a licensed loan officer.
On a conventional loan, usually yes when the down payment is small. FHA loans have an upfront premium and an annual premium. VA loans have no monthly mortgage insurance; most borrowers pay a one-time funding fee instead.
Only monthly mortgage insurance on a conventional loan. A single premium paid at closing is usually not refunded, and a cost built into the rate stays for the life of the loan. FHA mortgage insurance follows FHA’s own rules.
Once your balance falls to a set share of the home’s original value, ask your servicer in writing. Your payments must be up to date, and the servicer may check that the value has not fallen and that there is no second loan on the home. Federal law also ends it automatically a little later. Some servicers will consider the current value, usually with an appraisal you pay for.
A seller credit can sometimes be put toward a single premium instead of the price, within the limits the loan program sets on what a seller may pay. That can remove the monthly premium and lower the payment, while a price cut keeps the loan smaller. Which to choose depends on how long you expect to stay, so ask your lender before you write the offer.
Get a quote online, or call us and talk it through with a licensed loan officer.
This page is general information, not a commitment to lend. Programs, terms and eligibility depend on credit, income, property and underwriting review and are subject to change without notice.
Reviewed by Robert Shamie, CEO, NMLS #241428 · Last reviewed:
Fidelity Residential (PFN Lending Group, Inc., NMLS #103098) is a direct mortgage lender licensed in 40 states and the District of Columbia, with 26 years in business.