Loan Program
A jumbo loan is simply one larger than the conforming limit for its county, which means Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will not buy it. The lender either keeps it or sells it privately — and because there is no single rulebook, jumbo terms vary more between lenders than any other loan type. That is precisely why you should not take the first quote.
Every jumbo lender writes its own guidelines. Down payment requirements, reserve requirements, how bonus income is averaged, how restricted stock is treated, whether a second appraisal is needed — all of it moves from lender to lender. A file declined at one bank is routinely approved at another with better terms.
Jumbo underwriting cares how many months of payments you could cover after closing. Retirement accounts usually count at a discount. Borrowers often fail on reserves rather than income, and it is fixable with planning — which is why we would rather see your file early than the week you write an offer.
Jumbo is where bank statement and asset-depletion underwriting live. If your tax returns understate what you actually earn, a portfolio lender may qualify you on deposits or on assets instead. Those programmes price higher, but they close.
Jumbo underwriting is slower and more document-hungry than conforming, and the pricing spread between lenders on an identical file can be substantial. This is the single loan type where using a broker is worth the most, and equally the one where taking your own bank's first offer is likely to cost you the most.
It exceeds the conforming loan limit set for that county, so it cannot be sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. The limit is adjusted annually and is higher in expensive counties.
Commonly ten to twenty percent depending on the lender and loan size. Some portfolio lenders go lower for strong borrowers.
Not always. Jumbo has at times priced below conforming, because lenders want the relationship. It is worth pricing rather than assuming.
Tyler McCain is based in Lebanon, TN and works across the Nashville metro.
Tyler McCain is licensed in Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee and Texas. Programme rules are federal, but the markets are not.
As little as 3% down, with mortgage insurance that comes off.
Read more →Twelve to twenty-four months of deposits instead of W-2s.
Read more →Qualify on the property's rent, not your tax returns.
Read more →Lower the rate, drop the mortgage insurance, or pull cash out.
Read more →That depends on numbers we have not seen yet. Two minutes, no credit pull, and Tyler will tell you straight — including if the answer is a different programme entirely.
