Conventional loan in New York: what it costs on the median home, and when PMI ends
A conventional loan in New York is priced by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s national rules, then shaped by local facts: a $480,000 median, property tax near 1.4%, attorney closings, and a baseline conforming limit of $832,750. Here are the numbers and the rules, in that order.
| Conforming limit (2026, one unit) | $832,750 baseline in 52 of 62 counties, 10 high-cost counties up to $1,209,750 (Bronx County, Kings County, Nassau County and 7 more) |
|---|---|
| Median home price (approx.) | $480,000 — statewide order of magnitude |
| 20% down on the median | $96,000 down, loan $384,000, about $2,427/month P&I at 6.5% |
| 5% down on the median | $24,000 down, loan $456,000, about $2,882/month P&I + about $285 PMI |
| PMI ends (5% down, scheduled payments) | request at 80% after about 10 years and 4 months, automatic at 78% after about 11 years and 3 months |
| Property tax (effective) | about 1.4% — roughly $6,720 a year on the median |
| Closing practice | Attorney closing state |
The New York conforming limit and where jumbo starts
$832,750 is the ceiling on a conforming one-unit loan in New York for 2026. On the $480,000 median, a 20% down loan of $384,000 is 46% of the limit, comfortably conforming. Above the limit the loan is jumbo: typically a higher score, more reserves, a full appraisal and no automated-underwriting shortcuts. Every New York county is in the table below; see conforming loan limits and jumbo loans.
New York loan limits, county by county (2026)
FHFA sets the limit county by county. In New York, 52 of 62 counties use the $832,750 baseline and 10 — Bronx County, Kings County, Nassau County, New York County, Putnam County, Queens County and others — carry high-cost limits, the highest being $1,209,750 in Bronx County, Kings County, Nassau County and 7 more. High-cost rows are in bold.
| County | 1 unit | 2 units | 3 units | 4 units |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albany County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Allegany County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Bronx County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| Broome County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Cattaraugus County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Cayuga County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Chautauqua County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Chemung County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Chenango County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Clinton County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Columbia County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Cortland County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Delaware County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Dutchess County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Erie County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Essex County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Franklin County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Fulton County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Genesee County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Greene County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Hamilton County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Herkimer County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Jefferson County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Kings County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| Lewis County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Livingston County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Madison County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Monroe County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Montgomery County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Nassau County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| New York County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| Niagara County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Oneida County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Onondaga County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Ontario County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Orange County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Orleans County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Oswego County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Otsego County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Putnam County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| Queens County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| Rensselaer County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Richmond County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| Rockland County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| Saratoga County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Schenectady County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Schoharie County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Schuyler County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Seneca County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| St. Lawrence County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Steuben County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Suffolk County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| Sullivan County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Tioga County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Tompkins County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Ulster County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Warren County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Washington County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Wayne County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Westchester County | $1,209,750 | $1,548,975 | $1,872,225 | $2,326,875 |
| Wyoming County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Yates County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
Source: FHFA, Conforming Loan Limit Values for 2026 (county list, mortgages acquired in calendar year 2026). Limits are for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans; FHA and VA use their own county figures.
Down payment and monthly payment, four ways
Illustrative 6.5% 30-year fixed rate, principal and interest only; mortgage insurance at typical market rates for each down payment (it varies with credit score); property tax at the state’s approximate 1.4% effective rate. Homeowners insurance and any HOA come on top. None of it is an offer.
| Down payment | Cash down | Loan | P&I | PMI (est.) | Property tax | Monthly total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3% | $14,400 | $465,600 | $2,943 | $349 | $560 | $3,852 |
| 5% | $24,000 | $456,000 | $2,882 | $285 | $560 | $3,727 |
| 10% | $48,000 | $432,000 | $2,731 | $180 | $560 | $3,471 |
| 20% | $96,000 | $384,000 | $2,427 | — | $560 | $2,987 |
Below 20% down, the 3% and 5% programs (HomeReady, Home Possible, Conventional 97) have income or first-time conditions; see 3% down conventional loans.
Cancelling mortgage insurance: the dates
Three dates matter: the month the balance hits 80% of the original price (you ask), 78% (the servicer must act) and the loan’s midpoint (cancellation regardless of value, if current). On New York’s median with 5% down at 6.5%, the schedule reaches 80% in about 10 years and 4 months; with 3% down, about 11 years and 1 months; with 10% down, about 7 years and 11 months. Over that time the 5% buyer pays roughly $35,340 in PMI at $285 a month.
Recording taxes, transfer taxes and closing practice
New York is the archetypal attorney state: the buyer, the seller and the lender each have counsel, and the lender’s attorney or a title closer from the title company presides at a closing table where the deed, mortgage and note are exchanged on paper. No statute compels a lawyer, but custom and the complexity of New York contracts make one all but mandatory; attorney fees of a few thousand dollars per side are common downstate. Funding is wet, with the lender’s check or wire delivered at the table.
New York imposes a mortgage recording tax under Tax Law Article 11 on the face amount of the note, with a statewide base of 50 cents per $100 plus local additions; in New York City the combined rate on a one-to-three family home is 1.8 percent under $500,000 and 1.925 percent at or above it, of which the lender pays a quarter point. The tax is why refinancing borrowers use a Consolidation, Extension and Modification Agreement, or CEMA, to assign the old mortgage and pay tax only on new money. The separate real estate transfer tax and the mansion tax attach to the deed. New York’s state transfer tax is $2 per $500 (0.4%), paid by the seller; New York City adds 1% to 1.425% (seller), and buyers pay the “mansion tax” of 1% and up on purchases of $1 million or more. Buyers also pay mortgage recording tax of about 0.8% to 1.925% of the loan depending on the county.
New York buyers face the mortgage recording tax, attorney fees, title insurance and, in the city, high closing costs all around — commonly 3% to 5% of the price downstate, 2% to 3% upstate. Co-op purchases avoid the mortgage recording tax and title insurance.
New York rules that touch a conventional loan
Prepayment. General Obligations Law § 5-501(3)(b) generally prohibits a prepayment penalty on a loan secured by a one-to-six family owner-occupied home once the loan is more than a year old, and a penalty in the first year must be expressly stated in the note. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac do not buy loans with prepayment penalties, so a conforming loan will not carry one.
Spouses and title. New York follows separate property with equitable distribution, so a spouse who is not on the loan does not have his or her debts counted.
Homestead. CPLR 5206 protects equity in a homeowner’s principal residence from judgment creditors in three county-based tiers — the highest for New York City, Long Island, Westchester, Rockland and Putnam — with the dollar amounts adjusted every three years by the Department of Financial Services, so check the current figure.
The complete state layer — licensing, predatory-lending limits, disclosures, foreclosure — is on mortgage laws in New York.
Frequently asked questions
What is the conforming loan limit in New York for 2026?
Two tiers in New York for 2026: the $832,750 baseline in 52 counties and higher high-cost limits in 10, up to $1,209,750 in Bronx County, Kings County, Nassau County and 7 more. On the state’s $480,000 median, a 20% down loan of $384,000 is well inside the baseline. Two- to four-unit homes have higher limits everywhere.
When can I cancel PMI on a conventional loan in New York?
Federal law, not New York law, sets the dates: request at 80% of original value, automatic at 78%, and in any case at the loan’s midpoint. On the median New York price with 5% down at an illustrative 6.5%, that is roughly 10 years and 4 months and 11 years and 3 months respectively if you only make the scheduled payment.
Does New York add anything to a conventional loan’s closing costs?
New York imposes a mortgage recording tax under Tax Law Article 11 on the face amount of the note, with a statewide base of 50 cents per $100 plus local additions; in New York City the combined rate on a one-to-three family home is 1.8 percent under $500,000 and 1.925 percent at or above it, of which the lender pays a quarter point. New York’s state transfer tax is $2 per $500 (0.4%), paid by the seller; New York City adds 1% to 1.425% (seller), and buyers pay the “mansion tax” of 1% and up on purchases of $1 million or more. New York buyers face the mortgage recording tax, attorney fees, title insurance and, in the city, high closing costs all around — commonly 3% to 5% of the price downstate, 2% to 3% upstate.
Official sources for New York
- New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) / SONYMA: the agency that runs the state’s homebuyer programs
- New York State Department of Financial Services: state regulator of mortgage lenders and brokers
- NMLS Consumer Access: check any lender’s or loan officer’s license
- FHFA conforming loan limit files: the county limits shown on this page
Links checked September 22, 2026. Researched and edited by Clément Lacaille (Tech-Bharat); how we research.
Sources
Related: Renovation loans: HomeStyle, CHOICERenovation and FHA 203(k) compared, Loan-level price adjustments: why two borrowers get different rates on the same loan, Paying off your mortgage early: extra payments, biweekly plans and the actual math, Piggyback loans (80/10/10): a second mortgage instead of PMI. First home in New York: programs and assistance. Hub: Conventional loan.