PMI stands for Private Mortgage Insurance, and it is required on mortgages with a loan-to-value ratio greater than 80%. For example, if your home was worth $100k at the time of closing, and you owe more than $80k on the loan, you are required to have PMI.
I got my annual PMI disclosure tonight, and it says that if I’ve had my loan for at least two years, and have a good payment history for at least two years, I am eligible to cancel my PMI.
It’s not a lot, mind you. But I’d love to save the ~$70/mo it costs. That’s a fifth of vodka and a bag of CBD gummies, every month.
I’ll state up front that I have been processing residential loans for about 12 years now.
Typically, you’d get PMI from a third party like Arch, Essent, MGIC, etc. They tend to be pretty strict about not removing PMI until the loan has been paid down to 80% LTV. A lot of institutions like to use them because they have a high underwriting standard (which reduces the risk of regulatory violations and discrimination.)
What you’re describing would not be the norm; my best guess is your financial institution is handling MI itself and is able to deviate from standard practice. In some cases, we will send out an appraiser to do a “drive-by” valuation on loans nearing 80% LTV, so it’s possible they confirmed your loan to value has decreased without telling you that exactly. I could even see them sending these if they confirm the county valuation of your property is high enough to be confosent about your estimated LTV.
All that said, though, I hate this industry and do everything I can to do as little as possible for these fucking predators. 9-5, fuck your conferences and I don’t give a fuck about the secondary market or servicing. PMI removal is far past my involvement, but I have an overall understanding of the Mortgage origination and servicing