Current jumbo guidelines, updated from one source.
Four cards and two tables carry every figure a jumbo file turns on, drawn from one source built on the wholesale lane sheets: amount, credit, leverage, and ratio in the cards; structure, occupancy, reserves, and appraisal rules lane by lane in the tables.
From one dollar over the conforming limit to $5,000,000
From the conforming threshold to $5,000,000: that is the range the nine lanes cover between them, with the largest purchase amounts on the lanes that also carry the top leverage, and cash-out refinances capped below the purchase ceiling. The county’s conforming limit, reset each year, is the floor.
Lanes open at the floor and step up by leverage and structure
660 is the lowest credit floor in the table, carried by the lanes with the highest leverage and the widest occupancy. Other lanes ask for more in exchange for a longer term, an interest-only period, or an adjustable structure, and the automated finding still reads the whole credit file.
Loan-to-value on the top lane; eighty percent on the rest
90% is the most the program lends against a home, on one lane with its own amount range; the lanes around it reach nearly the same, and the rest stop at eighty percent. The leverage a file actually gets depends on the lane the structure, the amount, and the occupancy put it in.
On the fixed lanes; lower on the adjustable and interest-only lanes
Most lanes allow a total ratio of 50%; the interest-only and prime adjustable lanes allow less, because the payment can rise later. Enter income in the calculator to see where a scenario lands against the ceiling for the structure chosen.
| Lane | Structure | Credit | Max DTI | Max leverage | Loan amounts | Occupancies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lane A | 30-year fixed, 40-year fixed, 40-year fixed with 10-year interest-only | 700+ | 50% | 89.99% CLTV | above the conforming limit to $5M | primary, second, investment (cash-out: primary and second only) |
| Lane B | 30-year fixed | 660+ | 50% | 89.99% CLTV | above the conforming limit to $3M | primary, second, investment |
| Lane C | 30-year fixed | 720+ | 50% | 80% CLTV | above the conforming limit to $3.5M | primary, second |
| Lane D | 30-year fixed (660+); 40-year fixed and 40-year fixed with 10-year interest-only (680+, 80 percent LTV, to $2M) | 660+ | 50% | 89.99% LTV | above the conforming limit to $5M | primary, second, investment |
| Lane E | 30-year fixed | 660+ | 50% | 90% LTV | $400,000 to $3.5M | primary, second, investment |
| Lane F | 30-year fixed | 700+ | 45% | 80% LTV | $600,000 to $3M | primary |
| Lane G | 5-, 7- and 10-year adjustable-rate | 680+ | 45% | 80% LTV | above the conforming limit to $5M | primary, second, investment |
| Lane H | 30-year fixed with a 10-year interest-only period and 20-year amortization | 700+ | 43% | 80% LTV | above the conforming limit to $5M | primary, second |
| Lane I | 7- and 10-year adjustable-rate with expanded ratios | 660+ | 50% | 80% LTV | above the conforming limit to $3M | primary, second |
| Lane | Reserves | Two appraisals | Non-warrantable condos | Temporary buydowns |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lane A | primary purchase to $5M: 6–12 months; second home to $3M: 9–12; investment to $2.5M: 12; cash-out: 9 months minimum | above $2M | No | No |
| Lane B | to $2M per the automated finding; over $2M six months in addition; reserve table: primary purchase to $3M 6–12 months, second home to $3M 9–12, investment to $1.5M 12; cash-out primary to $2M 6–12, second to $2M 9–12, investment to $1.5M 12 | above $1.5M | Yes | Yes |
| Lane C | primary purchase to $2M 6–9 months, over $2M 24 months; second home to $2M 6–9; cash-out primary to $2M 6–9, second to $2M 6 | above $2M | No | No |
| Lane D | to $2M per the automated finding; over $2M six months in addition | above $2M | Yes | Yes |
| Lane E | to $2M per the automated finding; $2M–$3M six months in addition; over $3M twelve months in addition | above $2M | No | Yes |
| Lane F | per the automated finding | one appraisal | No | No |
| Lane G | over $2M eighteen months in addition to the automated finding | above $2M (one appraisal for purchases to $3M and refinances to $2M; two for refinances over $2M) | No | No |
| Lane H | to $1M twelve months in addition to the automated finding; over $1M twenty-four months | above $2M (one appraisal for purchases to $3M and refinances to $2M; two for refinances over $2M) | No | No |
| Lane I | primary purchase to $3M 6–18 months; second home to $3M 12–18; cash-out primary to $1.5M 12 (cash to $250,000), $1.5M–$2M 15 (cash to $500,000); second home cash-out 12–18 months | above $1.5M | No | No |
Structures across the nine lanes: 30-year fixed; 40-year fixed (manual underwrite on one lane); 40-year fixed with a 10-year interest-only period; 5-, 7- and 10-year adjustable-rate; 30-year fixed with a 10-year interest-only period and 20-year amortization. Purchases, rate-and-term refinances, and cash-out refinances; principal residences, second homes, and investment property where the lane allows. The headline figures are the best cell across lanes; no single lane carries all of them, and a Lendmire loan officer matches the file to the lane that fits.
Current jumbo snapshot · updated October 1, 2026 · a jumbo loan begins one dollar above the conforming limit for the county, which the FHFA resets each year and a Lendmire loan officer confirms · amounts at or below the limit are the conventional program · Lendmire is a broker, never the lender.
This page describes lane parameters, not an offer. The amounts, the credit floors, the leverage, the ratios, and the reserves are wholesale guidelines, subject to change without notice and to full underwriting; the appraisals, the credit report, the property, the occupancy, and the conforming limit decide every file. Lendmire is a broker, not a lender. Licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages. NMLS #2371349.
What a jumbo loan is — and how the file is qualified.
The difference between a jumbo loan and a conforming loan is who sets the rules. Above the limit there is no agency guide to follow, only the lender’s lane sheet, and the lane sheet is stricter in two places: reserves and appraisals. The cards below explain each of the four pieces for a Texas buyer.
For the program overview, see Lendmire’s jumbo loan program; for the conforming limit by county, see the FHFA.
Above the conforming limit
The threshold matters because it changes the rulebook: below it the agencies’ guides govern and the loan can be sold to them; above it the lender’s lane sheet governs and the loan stays with the lender or its investors. A Texas file that straddles the line is sized both ways before an offer.
Credit, ratios, and the lane
A derogatory event on a Texas jumbo file is seasoned the way the agencies season it, and the automated finding reads the whole credit history rather than the score alone. Where a lane is a manual underwrite, as the forty-year fixed is on one lane, the underwriter reads the file by hand.
Reserves by amount and occupancy
Two reserve regimes run through the lane table: the finding-driven lanes, where the automated system sets the months and the lane adds a fixed number above its amount threshold, and the table lanes, where the sheet names the months by occupancy outright. A Texas loan officer prices the file on both before choosing.
One appraisal, or two
Value on a jumbo file is scrutinized because no agency stands behind the loan. One appraisal to the lane’s threshold, two above it, no waivers on most lanes, and a condition review expecting the home to match its price: that is the appraisal picture for a Texas jumbo purchase.
A loan officer runs the same arithmetic on a Texas file with one refinement: the lane’s actual rate replaces the conforming benchmark, which is why the payment here is a reference rather than a quote. The structure, the leverage, and the amount are the moving parts.
Where Texas’ larger loans are written — and how jumbo fits.
A Texas jumbo file sits above the state’s median home, and these Census figures show how far above: owner households, the typical home value on the latest estimate, and household income statewide.
Statewide figures provide general market context, not an appraisal or an income calculation. Two buyers at the same score can see different files here: one borrows just past the limit and stays under the two-appraisal threshold, another borrows twice as much and carries extra reserve months. The market sets the spread.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Where Texas’ larger loans are written — market by market.
Each of these Texas markets has a jumbo guide of its own. The lane table, the reserve rules, and the appraisal thresholds are identical across them; the prices, the county limits, and the share of homes above the limit are what differ.
Houston
Near 391,519 Houston households own (42% of the total); the top of that market is where jumbo files are written, on homes whose loan amounts outrun the county limit. Census context: median value near $277,800, median household income near $64,813, population near 2.33M.
San Antonio
With owner households around 289,380, about 52% of households, San Antonio is a metropolitan market with a deep upper tier, and the jumbo loan is how that tier is financed. Census context: median value near $235,700, median household income near $65,056, population near 1.48M.
Dallas
Near 226,615 Dallas households own (42% of the total); the top of that market is where jumbo files are written, on homes whose loan amounts outrun the county limit. Census context: median value near $320,700, median household income near $70,518, population near 1.31M.
Austin
Near 198,180 Austin households own (43% of the total); the top of that market is where jumbo files are written, on homes whose loan amounts outrun the county limit. Census context: median value near $555,300, median household income near $93,658, population near 980K.
Fort Worth
Near 195,072 Fort Worth households own (57% of the total); the top of that market is where jumbo files are written, on homes whose loan amounts outrun the county limit. Census context: median value near $303,000, median household income near $79,507, population near 963K.
El Paso
El Paso carries one of the largest owner-household counts in Lendmire’s Texas footprint, near 149,169, about 61% of households, and in a metropolitan market of that depth the homes above the conforming limit are a market of their own. Census context: median value near $184,500, median household income near $59,745, population near 680K.
A Texas jumbo file is decided by the same four things in every city: the lane the structure and score allow, the reserves at the amount band, the appraisal count, and the ratio ceiling for the structure. The county limit resets yearly and is confirmed by a loan officer rather than printed here.
Four ways Texas buyers put a jumbo loan to work.
Texas borrowers use jumbo lanes for reasons that repeat: the purchase above the conforming limit with a modest down payment, the second home or investment property at the top of the market, the interest-only or adjustable structure that fits a particular plan, and the cash-out refinance on a home with substantial equity.
Finance a larger multi-unit home
A Texas multi-unit purchase above the limit sits on the lanes that allow investment occupancy, with the deepest reserve requirement in the table and the same appraisal rule as any jumbo file. Owner-occupied two- to four-unit homes follow the principal-residence rules on those lanes.
Refinance or take cash out above the limit
A Texas owner with a jumbo balance refinances on the same lanes, rate-and-term to the lane’s leverage or cash-out to a lower ceiling and a cash cap on some lanes; one lane also allows conforming amounts on a cash-out refinance at lower leverage after six months of ownership.
Finance a second home or an investment property
Most lanes reach second homes and several reach investment property, at the lane’s leverage and with more reserve months than a principal residence. A Texas buyer finances a weekend home or a rental above the limit on the same program, with the occupancy deciding the lane and the reserves.
Buy above the limit with a modest down payment
For a Texas purchase above the limit, the top lanes carry the leverage the conforming program carries below it; the price of that leverage is the reserve months, the lane’s credit floor, and, above the threshold, a second appraisal from a second appraiser.
Estimate the payment on a Texas price before requesting a quote.
Before you ask for a quote, size the file yourself: the Texas price, the down payment, the structure, the occupancy, the benchmark rate, and the escrows go in, and the lane rules come from the same guideline source as the block above. The result is an estimate, and the rate is a conforming market average that a jumbo lane’s rate differs from.
Texas jumbo payment estimate
Seeded at a jumbo-range price for Texas; every field updates the result, the lanes, and the reserves as you type.
Editable benchmark: 7.28% as of October 1, 2026 · Freddie Mac 30-year average via FRED®. A conventional market reference, not a jumbo loan quote.
Illustrative starting assumptions: a $1,000,000 price in the jumbo range for Texas, ten percent down on the top-leverage lane, a thirty-year fixed structure at the current Freddie Mac conforming benchmark, property taxes and insurance estimated for Texas (U.S. Census Bureau). Every field is editable.
Illustrative estimate only — not a Loan Estimate, approval, quote, or commitment to lend. The rate field carries the weekly Freddie Mac thirty-year conforming benchmark, a market reference and not a jumbo loan quote; jumbo rates are set by the lender and the lane at lock and differ from the conforming benchmark. An adjustable-rate scenario is shown at the benchmark for the whole term; the rate after the initial period is unknown. Reserve months and appraisal counts follow the lane sheet for the amount band; the automated finding may require more. Taxes, insurance and dues are editable estimates; closing costs are not included. The conforming limit for the county decides whether a loan is jumbo at all. Licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages.
Same purchase, three ways to structure it.
Choosing how to finance a large Texas purchase is really choosing which rulebook governs the loan: the lender’s lane sheet, the agencies’ guide, or both at once on a split structure. Each is laid out below with the buyer it fits.
Jumbo, high-balance conforming, or a conforming first with a second lien.
The program’s strengths are reach, leverage, and structure; its demands are reserves and appraisals. A Texas buyer at the top of the market usually ends up here because the conforming program stops at the county limit and the split structure only reaches so far.
Where the county allows it, the high-balance conforming loan keeps a Texas purchase inside the agencies’ guides, with their insurance rules and their lighter reserves; where the loan runs past even the high-cost figure, the jumbo lane is the only single-loan route. See Lendmire’s conventional loan program.
The split structure fits the Texas buyer whose loan would barely cross the limit: the first mortgage stays conforming, the second lien covers the gap, and the combined payment is often competitive with a single jumbo loan. The second lien is a HELOC with its own draw and repayment periods. See Lendmire’s home equity line of credit.
Where each one fits: the jumbo lane for the loan well above the limit, the high-balance conforming loan where the county’s figure reaches high enough, and the conforming-plus-HELOC structure for the loan just over the line with a buyer who prefers agency terms on the larger piece.
What to prepare for a Texas scenario review.
A jumbo file is documented more fully than a conforming one, because no agency stands behind it; here is what a Texas scenario review typically draws on.
This is a general preparation guide, not a universal checklist. The selected lender may request additional information based on the transaction, the property, the lane, the automated finding, and the income picture. Nothing here is legal or tax advice.
Local details that can change the loan.
A handful of details decide whether a Texas jumbo file closes as planned, closes on a different lane, or stalls. These are the ones that come up most.
Use these checks to keep the Texas file clean and fundable.
Three things to settle before a Texas review: whether the reserves meet the lane’s months at this amount, whether the amount crosses the two-appraisal threshold, and which lane the structure and score allow.
- Count the reserves: retirement and business funds count at the lane’s rules.
- Plan the appraisals: appraisal waivers are not available on the prime lanes.
- Document the income: two years of income history, expected to continue.
Reserves scaled to the amount
What counts is settled by the lane: liquid accounts in full, retirement and investment accounts at a haircut, business funds with documentation showing the business is not impaired. Gifts may cover part of the picture on some lanes. A Texas buyer should know the lane’s rule before counting any account.
One appraisal or two, by lane threshold
Above the lane’s threshold two appraisals from two different appraisers are required; below it one appraisal serves. Appraisal waivers are not available on the prime lanes. A Texas buyer above the threshold plans the second appraisal into the contract timeline and the budget.
Income documentation on a larger file
Self-employed Texas buyers carry the most paper on a jumbo file: two years of personal and business returns, year-to-date statements, and a reading of how the business is doing. Business funds used for the down payment or reserves need a letter or analysis showing the withdrawal does not impair the business.
Occupancy and the lanes that allow it
The occupancy a Texas buyer states must be the one the buyer keeps: a second home is for the owner’s use, an investment property is rented from the start, and a principal residence is occupied. The lane, the reserves, and the leverage all follow from it.
The ratio ceiling for the structure
Most lanes allow a total ratio as generous as a conforming loan’s; the prime adjustable lane, one fixed lane, and the interest-only lane allow less. A Texas buyer who moves from a fixed lane to an interest-only lane moves to a tighter ceiling at the same time.
From a Texas pre-approval to keys in hand.
Four steps: the pre-approval, the appraisals, the underwriting, and the closing. The Texas version of each follows.
Pre-approval
A Texas jumbo pre-approval is a sizing exercise with the lane table open: the amount against the limit, the leverage against the lane, the reserves against the band, the ratio against the structure. The loan officer puts the result in writing for the offer.
Contract and appraisals
With the contract signed, the lender orders one appraisal, or two from two different appraisers where the amount crosses the lane’s threshold. Seller contributions are checked against the lane, and a condominium’s project documents are collected for the lender’s review.
Underwriting
The underwriter verifies the file against the lane: the income over two years, the assets and the reserve months, the credit and any seasoning, the occupancy, and the property. The automated finding is confirmed where the lane uses one. Conditions are issued, documented, and cleared before the approval is final.
Closing
At closing the loan is funded on the lane and the structure chosen, the escrows for taxes and insurance are set up, and the reserves are left in the accounts that were verified. A Texas buyer signs the note and the security instrument and occupies the home as the stated occupancy requires.
A brokerage that reads every lane.
Lendmire never lends. It reads a Texas file against the jumbo lanes, the conforming high-balance loan, and the conforming-plus-HELOC structure, matches the file to the one that fits, and keeps the reserves, the appraisals, and the ratio ceiling in front of the buyer before anything is signed.
Every lane, one set of numbers
Before any recommendation, the Texas file is matched to every lane it fits and priced on each, then run against a high-balance conforming loan and a split structure on the same numbers. The buyer sees the payment, the reserves, and the cash to close for each.
Reserves and appraisals explained before the offer
The reserve months and the appraisal count are decided by the amount and the lane, and a buyer should know both before signing a contract. Lendmire states them for the Texas purchase, the reserves in months and dollars and the appraisals by count, and explains how a different down payment changes them.
Licensed, consumer-purpose, in writing
What this page shows are the lane parameters; what a specific Texas loan gets is a written set of terms from a licensed loan officer after the review, on the lane chosen and the structure selected. Lendmire is a broker, never the lender.
Trusted by buyers & families alike.
Texas jumbo loan FAQs
Plain answers to the questions Texas buyers ask most about jumbo loans, in the order they usually ask them.
What is a jumbo loan, and when do I need one?
A jumbo loan is a mortgage whose amount runs past the conforming limit the FHFA sets for the county, so Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will not buy it and a private lender writes it on its own lane rules. You need one in Texas when the loan amount, not the price, exceeds the county’s limit and you do not want a larger down payment or a split structure to stay under it.
How large can a jumbo loan be in Texas?
From just over the conforming limit to the figure in the snapshot. The lanes differ in where they start and stop: the top-leverage lane has its own amount range, the largest lanes reach the ceiling on purchases, and cash-out stops short of it. A Texas loan officer matches the amount to the lane.
What credit score do I need for a jumbo loan?
The floor in the snapshot opens the program on the lanes with the highest leverage; other lanes ask for more in exchange for a longer term, an interest-only period, or an adjustable structure. A Texas buyer close to a higher floor may gain more from a short wait than from any other change.
How much will a jumbo loan lend against the home?
The top lane lends the snapshot’s figure against the value; most other lanes lend eighty percent. The leverage a Texas file actually gets depends on which lane the structure, the amount, and the occupancy put it on.
How much do I need in reserves for a jumbo loan?
Months of the full housing payment held after closing, scaled to the loan amount and the occupancy: several lanes defer to the automated finding up to a threshold amount and add months above it, the reserve-table lanes name six to twelve months for a principal residence and more for a second home or a rental, and the interest-only lane asks for a year or two. The calculator turns the months into dollars at the payment entered.
Why does a jumbo loan need two appraisals?
Two appraisals from two different appraisers above the threshold, one below. The lane table shows where each lane draws the line, and the calculator reports which applies to the amount entered.
What debt-to-income ratio does a jumbo loan allow?
As generous as a conforming loan on most lanes, tighter on the structures that carry more payment risk later. The lane table shows each lane’s ceiling, and the automated finding, where the lane uses one, decides how much of the room a Texas file gets.
Can I take cash out with a jumbo refinance?
It is, with limits: the lane table and the second table show the amount ceilings, the cash caps where they apply, and the reserve months. The occupancy also matters, since some lanes limit cash-out to principal residences and second homes.
How is income documented on a jumbo loan?
Over the full two-year period, with the expectation that it continues: W-2s and pay stubs for wage income, two years of personal and business returns for self-employment, a history for bonus and commission, and leases for rental income. A jumbo lane reads income more fully than a conforming loan because no agency stands behind it.
What happens after my Texas offer is accepted?
The file moves into appraisal and underwriting, and the calendar is set by the appraisals and the conditions the underwriter adds. No page can promise a date, and this one does not.
A Texas jumbo loan sized to the price, the lane, and the reserves.
A Texas jumbo purchase starts with three questions: the amount against the limit, the structure, and the reserves. Lendmire answers them, prices the lanes, and writes up the one that fits.
This guide covers Texas — for the program overview, see Lendmire’s jumbo loan program.
All Texas city guides (6): Austin · Dallas · El Paso · Fort Worth · Houston · San Antonio
Related programs: Conventional Loans · Super Jumbo DSCR Loans · Super Jumbo Bank Statement Loans