Current FHA cash-out guidelines, updated from one source.
Nothing in the cards is a rate or a payment. They are the program’s settings: the ceiling on the base loan as a share of value, the months of ownership and occupancy required, the premium financed on top and the premium paid monthly, and the credit and ratio parameters. The calculator further down applies them to a Seattle home.
Of the adjusted value on a principal residence; 80% combined with any lien that stays
HUD’s cap is 80% of value on the base loan and 80% across every lien that remains after closing. The appraisal fixes the value, the cap fixes the base loan, the payoff and the costs fix the cash, and the financed upfront premium rides on top of all of it.
Owned and occupied as the principal residence before the case number is assigned
The occupancy rule has two halves: twelve months of ownership and twelve months of living in the home as the principal residence before the case number. Rentals and second homes fail the second half and are not eligible; a clean year of mortgage payments is required alongside it.
Plus an annual premium, charged monthly, for eleven years at cash-out leverage
1.75% upfront, financed on top of the capped base loan, and 0.50% annually on a standard thirty-year cash-out, charged monthly for eleven years: that is the price of HUD’s insurance of the lender’s risk. The premium schedule below carries every leverage band and loan tier.
Ratios of 31/43 by reference, higher with compensating factors
The decision score is the lowest of the borrowers’ middle scores: 500 is HUD’s floor, 580 the full-financing line, 580 the wholesale starting point. Reference ratios of 31/43 rise to 40/50 with compensating factors such as verified reserves or residual income.
| Base loan | Leverage | Annual premium | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard base loan amounts | at or below 90% LTV — the cash-out band | 0.50% | 11 years |
| Standard base loan amounts | above 90% to 95% LTV — purchase and rate-and-term leverage, not cash-out | 0.50% | mortgage term |
| Standard base loan amounts | above 95% LTV — purchase and rate-and-term leverage, not cash-out | 0.55% | mortgage term |
| Larger base loan amounts | at or below 90% LTV — the cash-out band | 0.70% | 11 years |
| Larger base loan amounts | above 90% to 95% LTV — purchase and rate-and-term leverage, not cash-out | 0.70% | mortgage term |
| Larger base loan amounts | above 95% LTV — purchase and rate-and-term leverage, not cash-out | 0.75% | mortgage term |
The line-of-credit alternative: on a primary residence Lendmire’s HELOC program reaches 90% combined loan-to-value behind the existing first mortgage, with no FHA premium attached. For a stronger credit profile the conventional cash-out matches this leverage with no premium at it and one wholesale lane goes higher; eligible veterans can reach the full value, funding fee included, through VA cash-out. Every route is priced on the same numbers before anything is recommended.
FHA cash-out snapshot as of October 1, 2026 · base loan sized on the appraised value, upfront premium financed above it · FHA county mortgage limits apply, confirmed by a Lendmire loan officer and never printed here · taking cash out raises the balance and may extend the payoff · Lendmire is a broker, never the lender.
This page states program parameters only. Every figure comes from Lendmire’s guideline source, built on HUD’s published handbook and a wholesale product sheet, is current as of the date shown, and may change. Approval depends on the FHA appraisal, the automated finding, full underwriting, and the selected lender’s overlays; cash-out proceeds increase the balance secured by the home. Lendmire LLC, NMLS #2371349, licensed mortgage broker in sixteen states. Not legal, tax, or investment advice.
What an FHA cash-out refinance is — and how the file is qualified.
Below, the FHA cash-out in four parts: the loan itself and where the cash comes from; HUD’s occupancy and payment-history test; the two premiums and the years they run; and the moment a conventional cash-out or a line of credit serves a Seattle homeowner better than the insured route.
For the program overview, see Lendmire’s FHA cash-out refinance program, or the statewide guide at FHA Cash-Out Refinance in Washington; the rules are HUD’s, in Handbook 4000.1.
One new FHA loan, cash at closing
Picture the house being refinanced from scratch with HUD standing behind the lender: a base loan sized to the cap, the payoffs and costs taken from it, the upfront premium stacked on top, and the balance of the proceeds wired to you after rescission. Your old payment disappears and one new payment, monthly premium included, takes its place.
The occupancy rule and the payment history
To be eligible, at least one borrower must have owned the home and lived in it as a principal residence for the twelve months before the case number is assigned, and every mortgage payment on the property in that year must have been made within the month it was due. Inherit the home and live in it, and the twelve-month wait is waived; the payment-history rule never is.
Mortgage insurance, upfront and monthly
The premium rate does not depend on the score; it depends on where the leverage starts and how large the base loan is. A cash-out begins at or below the ninety percent band, so the monthly premium has an eleven-year span, and a larger base loan pays the higher tier in the table. A later refinance into a conventional loan is how many Seattle owners end the premium early.
FHA cash-out or the alternatives
Same equity, three instruments: the FHA cash-out with its premiums and its forgiving standard; the conventional cash-out with no premium at this leverage and a stricter standard; the line of credit that adds a second lien instead of replacing the first. Lendmire prices all three for a Seattle home on the same value, balance, and cash before recommending one.
Everything hangs on two inputs, the adjusted value and the current balance. The first sets the ceiling, the second sets what is left under it, and the premiums follow whatever base loan results. The calculator renders all of it for a Seattle home and prints the line-of-credit figure alongside.
Where Seattle’s equity sits — and how FHA cash-out fits.
The guideline block is HUD’s; the figures below are Seattle’s, from the U.S. Census Bureau. Ownership, value, and income frame the FHA cash-out the way the appraisal and the pay stub later frame a single file.
These are context figures, not underwriting inputs. Scale, not quotation: the median value sizes a typical base loan, and the median income sizes the payment, premium included, a typical household can carry.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Distinct Seattle neighborhoods, distinct FHA files.
Sort Seattle’s neighborhoods by what an FHA underwriter asks about them: how long the owner has lived there, whether the project or the property type is eligible, and what the appraiser will find when the home is inspected against HUD’s standards.
Condominiums in approved projects
For a Seattle condominium the project is underwritten alongside the owner. Owner-occupancy share, reserves, the master policy, litigation, and commercial space all enter HUD’s review, the dues enter the ratios, and a building that cannot be approved sends the owner to a conventional lender instead. Seattle counts a population near 754K within the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA area.
High-value homes near the limit
On a high-value Seattle home the binding ceiling is often the county limit rather than the cap, and the premium tier steps up with the base loan. The limit is confirmed at the review, never printed here, and a loan that must exceed it is written elsewhere. Roughly 158,945 Seattle households own their homes on the latest Census estimate — 44% of all households, the pool an FHA cash-out refinance draws on.
Newer infill and recent purchases
Recent Seattle infill was bought at recent prices with small down payments, so a cash-out on it meets two limits at once: the year of ownership and occupancy and a balance that leaves little room under the cap. The review tells an owner whether to proceed now or wait. The median owner-occupied home value in Seattle runs near $938,600 on the latest Census estimate.
Long-held close-in homes
A close-in Seattle house with years of occupancy behind it clears HUD’s twelve-month rule without effort and carries a small balance against a grown value; the one item to prepare for is the appraisal’s inspection against HUD’s minimum property requirements. About 56% of Seattle’s households rent — roughly 204,521 renter households on the latest Census estimate.
Homes bought with FHA years ago
Plenty of Seattle owners bought with FHA at the program’s minimum investment and have built equity since. For the ones whose credit still fits HUD better than the conventional programs, the FHA cash-out is the natural next loan, with the premium continuing under the new schedule. Median household income in Seattle sits near $123,860 on the latest Census estimate.
Two- to four-unit homes, owner-occupied
An owner-occupied two- to four-unit home in Seattle is an insured cash-out at the standard cap with the leases documented and the rental income helping the ratios; a building the owner has left goes to the conventional program at the investment cap. On a Seattle home at the median value, an FHA cash-out refinance at the program cap finances up to $751,000 before the financed upfront premium — the existing balance comes off the top, and the rest is the cash available before closing costs.
The street does not change HUD’s handbook. Every Seattle file faces the same tests: adjusted value against the appraisal, base loan against the cap, ownership and occupancy against the year, the mortgage history against the month-due rule, and the borrower against the score floor and the ratio tiers.
Four ways Seattle homeowners put equity to work with FHA.
What the cash is for shapes the file, and four purposes account for most FHA cash-outs in Seattle. Each is described below with the underwriting detail that goes with it.
Fund a large expense or a reserve
A known one-time cost suits the lump sum; a cost that arrives over years suits a line of credit drawn as it comes. The review puts a figure on each for the Seattle home: the insured fixed payment with the premium against the cost of a line, on the same value and balance.
Leave a loan whose structure no longer fits
Some Seattle owners carry a loan they no longer understand or no longer want. The FHA cash-out replaces it with a fixed payment, a published premium schedule, and the equity in hand; whether it beats a conventional refinance depends on the decision score, and the review runs both.
Renovate or repair the home
The FHA appraisal is of the Seattle house as it is, so the renovation is sized to the equity already built, not to the value the work will create; a repair the appraiser requires may even have to be done before closing. The cash lands in one disbursement after rescission, and the payment is fixed from the start.
Capitalize a business or an investment
Working capital drawn from a Seattle home arrives as one disbursement after rescission and is repaid on the mortgage, premium included, regardless of how the venture performs. Underwriting reads the owner’s personal income and credit, not the business plan, and HUD’s standard is often the one a self-employed file clears.
Estimate the cash, the premium, and the new payment on a Seattle home before requesting a quote.
Type in a Seattle value, the current balance, and the cash you want; pick a term and the escrows. The calculator answers with the base-loan ceiling, the maximum cash at the cap, the total loan once the upfront premium is financed, the cash at closing before costs, principal and interest, the first-year monthly premium, the full payment, the back-end ratio against HUD’s reference, and the line-of-credit figure on the same value.
Seattle FHA cash-out estimate
A Seattle example to start from. Enter your own figures to see your own ceiling, premium, and payment.
Editable benchmark: 7.28% as of October 1, 2026 · Freddie Mac 30-year average via FRED®. A conventional market reference, not an FHA cash-out refinance quote.
Illustrative starting assumptions: a $940,000 home value near Seattle’s median owner-occupied value, a $517,000 current balance, the FHA cap on a principal residence with the upfront premium financed, a thirty-year term at the current Freddie Mac benchmark, property taxes and insurance estimated for Washington (U.S. Census Bureau). Every field is editable.
An illustration, not a Loan Estimate, an approval, a quote, or a commitment to lend. The rate shown is the weekly Freddie Mac thirty-year conventional benchmark, used as a market reference; an FHA cash-out is priced by the lender at lock, and this is not an FHA cash-out refinance quote. HUD’s cap limits the base loan; the upfront premium is financed above it; the monthly premium for the first year follows the snapshot’s schedule. Cash available means the base loan the cap permits less the balances retired, before closing costs, which this calculator leaves out. The line figure applies the line program’s combined loan-to-value ceiling to the same value and balance. Taxes and insurance are estimates you can edit. Licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages.
Same equity, three ways to borrow it.
Three routes to equity in a Seattle home, compared on what actually decides the choice: how far each reaches, what credit standard it applies, what happens to the existing first mortgage, and what each adds in insurance or fees.
FHA cash-out, conventional cash-out, or a HELOC.
A new FHA-insured first mortgage replaces the old one, with the upfront premium financed on top and a monthly premium inside the payment for eleven years at this leverage. Leverage runs to HUD’s cap on a principal residence, the credit standard is the most forgiving of the three, and the file is judged on compensating factors as well as the score.
The conventional cash-out reaches the same share of value on a one-unit principal residence with no premium at that leverage, and one wholesale lane lends higher for a strong score; the credit floor sits above HUD’s, the ratios are tighter, and the seasoning rule is six months on title. For a Seattle owner who qualifies, it is usually the cheaper loan over its life. See Lendmire’s conventional cash-out refinance program.
Keep the first mortgage, add a line. For a Seattle owner with a low-cost first lien and a modest or staged need, the line usually reaches the cash for less than any refinance; for an owner whose first mortgage should go, or whose credit fits HUD better than the line program, the FHA cash-out fits. See Lendmire’s home equity line of credit.
The credit profile decides first and the existing first mortgage decides second. A file the conventional programs accept takes the conventional route; a file they decline takes FHA; a first mortgage worth keeping points either one toward the line. A Seattle review settles it on the numbers rather than the labels. Veterans: see the VA cash-out program.
What to prepare for a Seattle scenario review.
No purchase contract, but more weight on the occupancy proof and the payment record. A Seattle file usually needs the items below, roughly in the order the lender asks.
A general guide to preparing, not a complete checklist: the selected lender may ask for more, depending on the transaction, the property, the automated finding, and the income picture. Nothing here is legal or tax advice.
Local details that can change the loan.
Five things to know before counting the cash on a Seattle home: what the premiums add, what the occupancy and payment-history rules demand, what the appraisal can require, and what the property type and the credit record contribute.
Use these checks to keep the Seattle file clean and fundable.
Before a Seattle review, settle three questions: has the home been the principal residence for a year with a clean payment record; what do the premiums add to the loan and the payment; and would the conventional route reach the same cash for less.
- Price the premium: Compare the FHA payment with the premium against the conventional payment without it.
- Confirm the occupancy clock: Every mortgage payment in the prior year within the month due; no non-occupant co-borrower.
- Account for the costs: Rolled-in costs and the financed premium reduce the cash; read the cash after costs.
The premium rides on the loan and inside the payment
Two premiums insure the loan: the upfront one is stacked on the base loan, so the total borrowed exceeds HUD’s cap by that share, and the annual one is collected with every payment for eleven years at cash-out leverage. Together they are the real cost of the insured route on a Seattle home, and the calculator shows both so the conventional comparison is made on the full figure.
Twelve months owned and occupied, with a clean payment history
HUD measures the year to the case number date, which the lender controls, so the timing of the request matters: a Seattle owner a month short of the year waits a month, and a payment made outside the month due inside that year stops the file until a clean year has passed. The deed, the address records, and the mortgage history are the three proofs.
Closing costs and the premium come out of the loan
Weigh the costs against the purpose. A Seattle owner after a modest sum may pay more to close an insured refinance than a line of credit would cost to open, and the line carries no premium; a larger sum spreads the same costs over more cash. The loan estimate itemizes everything after application and the closing disclosure finalizes it before signing.
Two- to four-unit homes qualify when the owner lives in one
A two- to four-unit home is eligible when the owner occupies one unit as a principal residence, at the same cap as a house, with the other units’ rent counted under HUD’s rules and a rent schedule in the appraisal. A Seattle owner of a duplex runs the numbers at the cap with that income included.
The term starts over on the whole balance
A new thirty-year loan on the whole balance, premium included, moves the payoff date out and resets the principal share of each payment; a fifteen-year loan keeps the horizon and raises the payment, and the premium rate follows the term as the table shows. The Seattle review lays both out so the choice is deliberate.
From a Seattle scenario review to cash at closing.
From the first conversation about a Seattle home to the wire after rescission, the file passes four gates, each with its own decision.
Scenario review
The review settles the shape of a Seattle file: whether the occupancy year and the payment record clear HUD’s test, what the premiums add, whether the conventional route would cost less, and whether a line would reach the same cash more cheaply. The answer is written terms, and the case number waits until the plan holds.
Application and case number
Once the application is filed, the disclosures go out, the credit report is pulled, the case number is assigned, and the finding tells the lender what to verify. The Seattle borrower sees the condition list here: statements, occupancy evidence, payoffs, insurance, and whatever the finding raises.
FHA appraisal and underwriting
Here the figures become final. The appraiser sets the Seattle home’s value and lists any required repairs; the underwriter tests the file against the handbook and the lender’s overlays; each condition is issued, documented, and cleared ahead of the final approval; and the closing disclosure is drawn on the final loan with the premiums inside it.
Closing, rescission, and funding
At closing the owner signs the note and the security instrument, the costs are settled, and the payoffs are scheduled. The rescission window then runs, and the lender funds when it closes: payoffs to the old lenders, cash to the borrower. The first payment on the new loan, premium included, falls at the start of the second month after funding.
A brokerage built around equity lending.
A broker’s worth on an insured cash-out is choice and candor. The FHA route, the conventional route, the wholesale lane above it, and the line of credit are all available in one place, compared on the owner’s own figures, with the fit written up and the misfits explained.
Every route, one review
The FHA cash-out, the conventional cash-out, and the home equity line are all arranged here, so the comparison is made on arithmetic rather than on what one desk sells. A Seattle owner sees the insured payment with the premium next to the conventional payment without it and the line behind the current loan, and decides with the figures in hand.
Placed across wholesale programs
Wholesale lenders differ on their FHA floors and their cost tiers, and the differences at a given score are real on a cash-out. Lendmire sends the Seattle file to the program whose overlays fit it, which is rarely where a single lender’s rate sheet would have placed it.
Terms in writing, before any fee
An appraisal fee on a plan that cannot close is money wasted, so the review is done at a realistic value with room beneath it and with the occupancy and payment history confirmed; the terms are written, and only then is the case number requested. If the value comes in low, the Seattle owner already knows what the loan becomes.
Trusted by homeowners & families alike.
Seattle FHA cash-out refinance FAQs
Before you apply in Seattle: how much, how soon, what the premium costs, and when the conventional route or a line of credit is the better instrument.
What is an FHA cash-out refinance, and who is it for?
The insured version of a cash-out: one new first mortgage, the equity returned as a lump sum, HUD’s insurance in exchange for HUD’s more forgiving review. A borrower with a strong file usually does better conventionally; a borrower with a thinner one often finds FHA is the door that opens.
How much cash can I take out with an FHA refinance?
Three numbers decide it: the value, the balance, and the cap. The cap is in the snapshot, the balance is on your statement, the value is the appraiser’s. The calculator combines them for a Seattle home and prints the line-of-credit figure beside the FHA figure, since the line reaches a higher combined leverage.
How long do I need to have lived in my home before an FHA cash-out?
A year of ownership and occupancy before the case number, proven by the deed and by records at the address, with a clean mortgage record for that year. A non-occupant co-borrower cannot be added to help the file qualify.
What does FHA mortgage insurance cost on a cash-out, and how long does it last?
Two charges insure the loan: an upfront share of the base loan, financed into the balance at closing, and a monthly share of the balance that lasts eleven years, the span HUD assigns to a loan starting at or under the ninety percent band. The snapshot table carries the exact rates by leverage and loan tier for a Seattle home.
What credit score do I need for an FHA cash-out refinance?
Two numbers in the snapshot matter: HUD’s floor and the wholesale program’s starting point. Above them the score prices the loan rather than deciding its availability, and the ratios and compensating factors carry the rest.
When do I actually get the money?
Always after rescission, because HUD insures principal residences only. Once the window closes, the settlement agent retires the old mortgage and any second lien, records the new one, and wires the remainder to the Seattle owner.
Is the FHA Streamline refinance a cash-out option?
Not for cash. The Streamline keeps the loan near the existing balance and skips the appraisal; the cash-out is appraised, underwritten in full, and sized to the cap on a Seattle home.
How long does an FHA cash-out refinance take?
No fixed answer exists; the stages run in order and the slowest condition sets the pace. Having statements, occupancy evidence, insurance, and payoff figures ready at application is the one lever a Seattle owner holds.
Would a HELOC be better than an FHA cash-out?
Neither is better in the abstract. The line wins on cost when the existing loan is good and on flexibility when the money is needed over time; the FHA refinance wins on certainty with one fixed payment, on size with a larger lump sum, and on credit where the line program’s standard is stricter than HUD’s.
Are there restrictions on what I can use the cash for?
Any lawful purpose, with no restriction from HUD: the lender records the purpose on the application and documents a payoff only when the retired debt leaves the ratio. The loan is secured by the Seattle home however the proceeds are used, and the tax treatment of the interest is a question for a tax adviser.
From a Seattle scenario review to cash after rescission.
When you are ready, the review sizes the loan, settles the route and the term, compares the alternatives, and produces written terms for your Seattle home. Nothing on this page commits anyone to lend.
This guide covers Seattle — for the statewide guidelines, markets, and scenarios, see FHA Cash-Out Refinance in Washington, part of Lendmire’s FHA cash-out refinance program.
Nearby markets in Washington: Bellevue · Kent · Tacoma · Vancouver · Spokane
Related programs: Cash-Out Refinance · FHA Loans · HELOC