Conventional loan in West Virginia: what it costs on the median home, and when PMI ends
On West Virginia’s rough $170,000 median, a conventional loan with 5% down means $8,500 at closing and about $1,200 a month with taxes and mortgage insurance; with 20% down, $34,000 and about $938. Everything below is worked on those numbers and on the state rules that change them.
| Conforming limit (2026, one unit) | $832,750 baseline in 54 of 55 counties, 1 high-cost county up to $1,249,125 (Jefferson County) |
|---|---|
| Median home price (approx.) | $170,000 — statewide order of magnitude |
| 20% down on the median | $34,000 down, loan $136,000, about $860/month P&I at 6.5% |
| 5% down on the median | $8,500 down, loan $161,500, about $1,021/month P&I + about $101 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 0.55% — roughly $935 a year on the median |
| Closing practice | Attorney closing state |
How much house stays conforming in West Virginia
Two numbers decide the question in West Virginia: the 2026 conforming limit of $832,750 and the price you pay. Keep the loan at or under the limit — by price, by down payment, or with a conforming first plus a second lien — and you get Fannie/Freddie pricing and flexibility (3% down programs, automated underwriting, appraisal waivers). At the state median of $170,000, every scenario below is conforming. Every West Virginia county is in the table below; see conforming loan limits and jumbo loans.
County-level loan limits in West Virginia for 2026
FHFA sets the limit county by county. In West Virginia, 54 of 55 counties use the $832,750 baseline and 1 — Jefferson County — carry high-cost limits, the highest being $1,249,125 in Jefferson County. High-cost rows are in bold.
| County | 1 unit | 2 units | 3 units | 4 units |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barbour County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Berkeley County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Boone County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Braxton County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Brooke County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Cabell County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Calhoun County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Clay County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Doddridge County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Fayette County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Gilmer County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Grant County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Greenbrier County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Hampshire County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Hancock County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Hardy County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Harrison County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Jackson County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Jefferson County | $1,249,125 | $1,599,375 | $1,933,200 | $2,402,625 |
| Kanawha County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Lewis County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Lincoln County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Logan County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Marion County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Marshall County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Mason County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| McDowell County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Mercer County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Mineral County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Mingo County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Monongalia 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 |
| Morgan County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Nicholas County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Ohio County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Pendleton County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Pleasants County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Pocahontas County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Preston County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Putnam County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Raleigh County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Randolph County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Ritchie County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Roane County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Summers County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Taylor County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Tucker County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Tyler County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Upshur 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 |
| Webster County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Wetzel County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Wirt County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Wood County | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 |
| Wyoming 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.
The numbers: 3%, 5%, 10% and 20% down in West Virginia
Worked at an illustrative 6.5% over 30 years on the $170,000 median. PMI uses order-of-magnitude annual rates by down payment; tax uses West Virginia’s approximate 0.55% effective rate. Your county, score and insurer will move every column.
| Down payment | Cash down | Loan | P&I | PMI (est.) | Property tax | Monthly total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3% | $5,100 | $164,900 | $1,042 | $124 | $78 | $1,244 |
| 5% | $8,500 | $161,500 | $1,021 | $101 | $78 | $1,200 |
| 10% | $17,000 | $153,000 | $967 | $64 | $78 | $1,109 |
| 20% | $34,000 | $136,000 | $860 | — | $78 | $938 |
The 3% row assumes a program such as HomeReady or Home Possible; income limits apply. Compare with FHA at 3.5% down on the FHA vs conventional guide.
How long you pay PMI here
Mortgage insurance on a conventional loan is temporary. With only the scheduled payments at 6.5%, the West Virginia buyer who put 5% down reaches the 80% request point after about 10 years and 4 months and the 78% automatic point after about 11 years and 3 months; with 10% down the request point comes after about 7 years and 11 months. Paying an extra $102 a month toward principal, or asking for cancellation on a new appraisal after two years of appreciation, shortens the clock. The full rules are on how to remove PMI.
Closing costs and taxes in West Virginia
West Virginia closings are customarily conducted by attorneys, who search the title in the county clerk’s office, prepare the deed and deed of trust, issue the title policy as agent and disburse the funds; title companies operate mostly through lawyer agents. Funding is wet, and the deed of trust is recorded with the county clerk right after closing. Attorney settlement fees are usually a few hundred dollars plus the title examination.
West Virginia charges no mortgage tax or intangible tax on the note; the county clerk collects a flat recording fee for the deed of trust. The transfer tax on the deed, an excise tax of $1.10 per $500 for the state plus a county share of the same order (Code § 11-22-2), is paid by the seller and does not depend on the loan amount. West Virginia’s excise tax on real property transfers is $1.10 per $500 for the state plus $1.10 per $500 for the county (0.44% combined; some counties charge more), customarily paid by the seller.
West Virginia buyer closing costs typically total 2% to 3% of a low price; attorneys or title agencies handle closings.
Prepayment, spouses and homestead in West Virginia
Prepayment. The West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act gives a borrower the right to prepay a consumer loan in full at any time without penalty (Code § 46A-3-110), and the Act’s definition of consumer loan reaches most residential mortgages made to West Virginia homeowners, so prepayment penalties are effectively unavailable on the ordinary home loan. Federal QM rules ban prepayment penalties on most conventional loans anyway; the Loan Estimate says yes or no on page one.
Spouses and title. West Virginia is an equitable-distribution, separate-property state, so a home titled to one spouse stays that spouse’s property until divorce; dower and curtesy were abolished, so a non-borrowing spouse technically need not sign a deed of trust on property held solely by the other.
Homestead. West Virginia has two homestead shields: a small recorded homestead under Code chapter 38, article 9, rooted in the state Constitution, and the $25,000 residence exemption in Code § 38-10-4 that applies in bankruptcy (doubled when both spouses file); verify whether the legislature has raised these figures, as they are revisited periodically.
The complete state layer — licensing, predatory-lending limits, disclosures, foreclosure — is on mortgage laws in West Virginia.
Frequently asked questions
What is the conforming loan limit in West Virginia for 2026?
There is no single West Virginia number: 1 of the state’s 55 counties are FHFA high-cost areas in 2026, with one-unit limits between $1,249,125 and $1,249,125 (Jefferson County); the other 54 use the $832,750 baseline. Above your county’s limit, the loan is jumbo.
When can I cancel PMI on a conventional loan in West Virginia?
Under the federal Homeowners Protection Act you may request cancellation when the balance reaches 80% of the original value and the servicer must cancel automatically at 78%. On a $170,000 West Virginia home bought with 5% down at an illustrative 6.5%, scheduled payments reach 80% after about 10 years and 4 months and 78% after about 11 years and 3 months; extra principal or a new appraisal showing appreciation can move the date up.
Does West Virginia add anything to a conventional loan’s closing costs?
West Virginia charges no mortgage tax or intangible tax on the note; the county clerk collects a flat recording fee for the deed of trust. West Virginia’s excise tax on real property transfers is $1.10 per $500 for the state plus $1.10 per $500 for the county (0.44% combined; some counties charge more), customarily paid by the seller. West Virginia buyer closing costs typically total 2% to 3% of a low price; attorneys or title agencies handle closings.
West Virginia: where to verify
- West Virginia Housing Development Fund (WVHDF): the state housing finance agency (first-time buyer loans, down payment assistance)
- West Virginia Division of Financial Institutions: where to check a state license or file a complaint
- 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: Mortgage reserves: how many months lenders want left after closing, Changing jobs before closing on a house: what survives underwriting, Construction-to-permanent loans: one closing, two closings and the 18-month clock, Getting a mortgage on retirement income: what counts and how it is calculated. First home in West Virginia: programs and assistance. Hub: Conventional loan.