Current conventional guidelines, updated from one source.
One guideline source feeds every number here, and the page updates when the source does. These are purchase and refinance parameters; the leverage table underneath covers occupancy by occupancy, and the status lines cover insurance, gifts, and the first-time-buyer programs.
First-time buyer; 5% standard; 97% loan-to-value at the top
3% down is the first-time buyer’s entry point and 5% the standard one, both on a one-unit principal residence; second homes, two- to four-unit homes, and investment properties carry their own leverage limits, listed in the table below.
Priced on the score; no agency minimum with an automated approval
A 620 decision score opens the program on the wholesale side; the agencies set no minimum for an automated approval and 620 to 640 for manual underwriting by loan type. The strongest effect of the score is on cost, through loan-level adjustments and the mortgage insurance premium.
Required above 80% LTV; removed at 80% by request, 78% automatically
The insurance line in a conventional payment is a bridge, not a fixture: required above 80% loan-to-value, cancellable at 80% on request and 78% by law, and priced by the insurer on the score inside Fannie Mae’s published 0.58%–1.86% range. Twenty percent down skips it entirely.
With an automated approval; 36% to 45% on a manual file
50% is the ceiling for a file the automated system approves. Manual underwriting caps the ratio at 36% to 45% depending on the score and the reserves, and the automated finding also sets the reserves the file must show.
| Purpose | Occupancy and program | Maximum LTV |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase | One-unit principal residence, first-time buyer (fixed rate) | 97% |
| Purchase | One-unit principal residence, standard | 95% |
| Purchase | HomeReady / Home Possible (income limits apply) | 97% |
| Purchase | Two- to four-unit principal residence | 95% |
| Purchase | Second home | 90% |
| Purchase | Investment property, one unit | 85% |
| Purchase | Investment property, two to four units | 75% |
| Refinance | Limited cash-out (rate-and-term), one-unit principal residence | 95% |
| Refinance | Cash-out, one-unit principal residence | 80% |
| Refinance | Cash-out, two to four units, second home or investment | 75% |
| Combined LTV | Maximum contribution |
|---|---|
| above 90 percent | 3% of the sales price |
| 75.01 to 90 percent | 6% of the sales price |
| 75 percent or less | 9% of the sales price |
| investment property (any) | 2% of the sales price |
| Event | Waiting period |
|---|---|
| Chapter 7 or 11 bankruptcy | four years from discharge or dismissal (two years with documented extenuating circumstances) |
| Chapter 13 bankruptcy | two years from discharge; four years from dismissal (two with extenuating circumstances) |
| Multiple bankruptcy filings | five years when more than one filing within the past seven years |
| Foreclosure | seven years (three with extenuating circumstances, then limited to a principal residence or second home at 90 percent LTV, purchase or limited cash-out) |
| Deed-in-lieu, short sale or mortgage charge-off | four years (two with extenuating circumstances) |
Mortgage insurance: Fannie Mae reports that private mortgage insurance typically ranged from 0.58%–1.86% of the loan amount a year; the premium on a specific loan is priced by the insurer on the score, the leverage, and the coverage, and is never quoted here. Gifts from relatives may fund the entire down payment on a one-unit principal residence. HomeReady and Home Possible lend to 97% with income at or below 80% of the area median; HomeOne lends to the same leverage with a first-time buyer and no income limit.
Current conventional snapshot · updated October 1, 2026 · principal residences occupied within sixty days, second homes, and one- to four-unit investment properties · conforming limits apply by county and are confirmed by a Lendmire loan officer · above the limit, see the jumbo program · no prepayment penalty · Lendmire is a broker, never the lender.
Informational only; not a commitment to lend, an approval, or a quote. Every figure on this page is a program parameter read from Lendmire’s guideline source, built on the agencies’ published guides, and may change without notice; eligibility, the loan amount, the insurance, and the ratios depend on the credit profile, the property, the occupancy, and underwriting. The mortgage insurance estimate is editable and not a premium quote. Lendmire is a mortgage broker licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages. NMLS #2371349.
What a conventional loan is — and how the file is qualified.
Every Fort Worth conventional file is read by an automated underwriting system against the agencies’ guides. The system does not change the rules below; it applies them: how much leverage the occupancy allows, how the score is read, when mortgage insurance attaches and ends, and what the ratios and reserves must show.
For the program overview, see Lendmire’s conventional loan program, or the statewide guide at Conventional Loans in Texas; for the mortgage insurance cancellation rules, see the CFPB.
Leverage by occupancy and buyer
Who the buyer is matters as much as what the home is. A first-time buyer, meaning no ownership interest in a home for three years, qualifies for the smallest down payment on a principal residence; a repeat buyer starts a little higher; and HomeReady, Home Possible, and HomeOne open the top leverage to buyers who meet their conditions.
Credit scores and automated underwriting
What the score does on a Fort Worth conventional file is set the cost. A lower score raises the loan-level adjustments and the insurance premium; a higher score lowers both. Manual underwriting, used when the automated system cannot approve the file, carries its own minimum score and tighter ratios.
Mortgage insurance that cancels
Insurance structures vary: borrower-paid monthly is the default, and lender-paid, single-premium, and split-premium versions exist, each built into the loan differently. The published typical range in the snapshot is Fannie Mae’s, and the actual premium for a Fort Worth file comes from the insurer at lock, never from this page.
Ratios, reserves, and the DU finding
The automated finding is the hinge of a conventional file: it reads the income, the assets, the credit, and the property, allows a total debt ratio up to the automated maximum, and names the reserves the file must show. A Fort Worth underwriter then verifies what the finding assumed.
The calculator runs this on a Fort Worth scenario and adds the piece most calculators skip: the month on the amortization schedule when the balance reaches the request and automatic-termination thresholds, so the payment after the insurance ends is visible beside the payment before.
Where Fort Worth buyers borrow — and how a conforming loan fits.
These numbers are Fort Worth’s, not any one borrower’s: owner households, median home value, and household income from the U.S. Census Bureau. They give the scale of a typical purchase here; the score, the appraisal, and the household’s own income give the loan.
Market context only. Read the figures as ranges, not predictions. The lender appraises one home, documents one income, and lets the automated system read one credit file.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Distinct Fort Worth neighborhoods, distinct conventional files.
Six Fort Worth neighborhoods, six versions of the same program: the cards below describe the housing stock, the price range, and the conventional question that comes up most often in each.
Higher-value homes
The higher-value Fort Worth file is a limit question, not an eligibility question. The conforming limit caps the loan amount, and the buyer either adds down payment to fit under it or chooses the jumbo route for the whole purchase. About 43% of Fort Worth’s households rent — roughly 147,054 renter households on the latest Census estimate.
Established close-in neighborhoods
The Fort Worth blocks nearest the core carry the oldest houses, and a conventional appraisal reads them for value first and condition second: no HUD or VA property standard, but the home must be safe, sound, and marketable, and a failing roof or system still draws a condition note. Median household income in Fort Worth sits near $79,507 on the latest Census estimate.
Two-to-four-unit homes
Owner occupancy of one unit sets the leverage on a Fort Worth multi-unit conventional loan; without it, the property is an investment purchase at the lower investment leverage. The appraisal reads every unit and the rents. Roughly 195,072 Fort Worth households own their homes on the latest Census estimate — 57% of all households, the pool a conventional purchase joins.
Condominiums and townhomes
Much of Fort Worth’s entry-level stock is attached housing, and a conventional loan finances it whenever the project is warrantable under the agencies’ review. The dues go into the ratio, and the first-time buyer’s minimum applies as it would on a house. The median owner-occupied home value in Fort Worth runs near $303,000 on the latest Census estimate.
Investor and second-home purchases
A second home in Fort Worth, occupied part of the year and never run as a rental business, is a conventional file at the second-home leverage with deeper reserves and part of the down payment from the buyer’s own funds. On a home at Fort Worth’s median value, the first-time buyer’s minimum down payment comes to about $9,100 and the standard minimum to about $15,200 — before closing costs, and before the mortgage insurance that comes with either.
Newer infill and recent construction
New rows and recent infill in Fort Worth tend to appraise cleanly, which moves the question to the loan amount: a contract near the conforming limit is confirmed against the county figure before the offer, and a loan above it needs a larger down payment or the jumbo program. Fort Worth counts a population near 963K within the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX area.
Across all of Fort Worth, five questions settle a conventional loan: what the appraisal supports, whether the property passes the agencies’ review, how the home will be occupied, what the score costs, and what the ratio and reserves allow.
Four ways Fort Worth buyers put a conforming loan to work.
Fort Worth borrowers use conforming loans for reasons that repeat: the first purchase at the first-time-buyer minimum, the purchase with twenty percent down and no insurance, the second home or rental no government program will finance, and the refinance or cash-out on a home with equity.
Refinance or take cash out
A Fort Worth owner can refinance a conventional loan two ways: a limited cash-out refinance to the rate-and-term leverage in the snapshot, or a cash-out refinance to the lower cash-out leverage after the seasoning period, on a principal residence, second home, or rental at each occupancy’s own limit.
Buy a condominium in a warrantable project
A Fort Worth condominium is a conventional purchase when the project passes the agencies’ review: owner-occupancy mix, budget and reserves, litigation, commercial space, and ownership concentration. The dues enter the ratio, and the leverage follows the occupancy as it would on a house.
Buy an investment property
The rental purchase is inside the conventional program at a lower leverage than a principal residence: a Fort Worth buyer uses the agencies’ rules for counting rental income, shows reserves for every property financed, and accepts loan-level adjustments that reflect the occupancy.
Buy with twenty percent down and no insurance
Twenty percent down removes the insurance line from the payment on any conventional purchase in Fort Worth; between the minimum and twenty percent, the insurance applies for a while and then ends, and the calculator shows both payments.
Estimate the payment on a Fort Worth price before requesting a quote.
The program’s own math on your Fort Worth inputs: price less the down payment, amortized at the benchmark, with the insurance estimate added while the leverage is above the threshold and the escrows added throughout. The actual rate, premium, payment, and costs come in writing from a licensed loan officer.
Fort Worth conventional payment estimate
Defaults describe Fort Worth, not your purchase: put in the real price, the real down payment, and the real escrows.
Editable benchmark: 7.03% as of September 24, 2026 · Freddie Mac 30-year average via FRED®. A conventional market reference, not a conventional loan quote.
Estimate seeded at the low end of Fannie Mae’s published range (0.58%–1.86% a year); the insurer prices the actual premium on the score and the leverage. Applies only above 80% loan-to-value.
Illustrative starting assumptions: a $305,000 price near Fort Worth’s median owner-occupied home value, the first-time buyer’s minimum down payment, a thirty-year term at the current Freddie Mac benchmark, mortgage insurance at the low end of Fannie Mae’s published range, 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 conventional benchmark, a market reference and not a conventional loan quote; your rate is set by the lender at lock. The mortgage insurance figure is an editable estimate seeded from Fannie Mae’s published typical range, not a premium quote; the insurer prices the actual premium, and the cancellation month assumes scheduled payments with no extra principal and no change in value. Taxes, insurance and dues are editable estimates; closing costs are not included. Conforming loan limits apply by county. Licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages.
Same buyer, three very different closings.
Choosing among conventional, FHA, and VA in Fort Worth is really choosing an insurance structure and a credit standard at the same time. Each is laid out below with the buyer it fits.
Conventional, FHA, or VA.
A low down payment for the first-time buyer, insurance priced on the score and removed once the balance falls below the threshold, no upfront premium, and, of the three programs compared here, the one that finances second homes and investment property. The cost is a credit standard that prices a weak score heavily.
Where conventional prices the score, FHA prices by schedule. FHA fits the buyer whose score would be priced heavily on a conventional loan, or who needs the ratio ladder’s room; it rarely wins for a Fort Worth buyer with strong credit and a down payment above the minimum. See Lendmire’s FHA loan program.
VA beats conventional on the principal residence for nearly every eligible borrower; conventional beats VA on everything VA does not touch: second homes, rentals, and buyers without the certificate. The two often sit side by side in one Fort Worth household. See Lendmire’s VA loan program.
Choose by profile: a strong score and any down payment point to conventional; a modest score and a small down payment point to FHA; eligibility with full entitlement points to VA. A Fort Worth loan officer runs all three on the same numbers before recommending one. Above the conforming limit, see the jumbo loan program.
What to prepare for a Fort Worth scenario review.
Gather these before a Fort Worth review: the ordinary mortgage documents, plus the pieces that settle the first-time-buyer question and the occupancy.
This is a general preparation guide, not a universal checklist. The selected lender may request additional information based on the transaction, the property, the automated underwriting finding, and the income picture. Nothing here is legal or tax advice.
Local details that can change the loan.
What moves a Fort Worth file most often: the insurance and its cancellation, the score and the cost it sets, the appraisal, the condominium review, the conforming limit, the ratio and the reserves, the occupancy rule, and the seasoning after a credit event.
Use these checks to keep the Fort Worth file clean and fundable.
Three things to settle before a Fort Worth review: how the mortgage insurance will be structured and when it ends, where the decision score lands and what it prices, and whether the property has any agency question attached.
- Plan the insurance: twenty percent down carries no insurance at all.
- Confirm the score: a self-pulled score can differ from the decision score.
- Mind the appraisal: a short value is paid in cash, renegotiated, or released under the contingency.
Mortgage insurance: how much, and until when
The premium on a Fort Worth loan can be paid monthly, by the lender in exchange for a different price, as a single premium at closing, or split; the monthly structure cancels under the federal rules, and the others are priced by the lender. The calculator shows the monthly structure and the month the thresholds arrive on scheduled payments.
The score sets the cost
The decision score is read from the lender’s report, and with more than one borrower the automated system uses the average of the median scores. On a Fort Worth conventional file the score rarely ends eligibility, but it sets the loan-level adjustments and the insurance premium, so a difference of a few points can change the monthly cost.
The appraisal and value acceptance
Two outcomes matter on a Fort Worth appraisal: the value, which caps the loan, and the condition, which the lender must find acceptable. A waiver or value acceptance, where the automated system offers one, removes both questions and the appraisal fee at once, and the file closes on the system’s valuation.
Second homes, rentals, and financed-property limits
Of the three programs compared on this page, the conventional loan is the one that reaches a Fort Worth second home or rental, and it does so with conditions: lower leverage, deeper reserves, adjustments for the occupancy, and a limit on the number of financed properties one borrower may carry.
Ratios, reserves, and the finding
The automated finding decides how much of the ratio ceiling a Fort Worth file actually gets: a strong score and reserves earn the room, a thin profile earns less. The reserves are measured in months of the total housing payment and must be documented, not promised.
From a Fort Worth pre-approval to keys in hand.
Underneath, the Fort Worth process is any mortgage process; what makes it conventional is the automated finding, the project review where it applies, the leverage by occupancy, and the insurance threshold. Each step below says what happens and what the buyer does.
Pre-approval
Start with the score, the income, the down payment, and the occupancy. A Lendmire loan officer runs the automated system, confirms the leverage and the insurance for the down payment chosen, checks the loan against the conforming limit, compares the structure with FHA and VA on the same numbers, and provides the terms in writing.
Contract and appraisal
The appraisal is a valuation first and a condition report second on a conventional file; a short value re-sizes the loan, and the Fort Worth contract is adjusted or released under its contingency. Where the system offers value acceptance, the step collapses to the system’s figure.
Underwriting
The underwriter verifies what the automated finding assumed: the income, the assets and reserves, the credit and any seasoning, the occupancy, and the property. A manual file follows the lower ratio pair instead. Conditions are issued, documented, and cleared before the approval is final.
Closing
The Fort Worth closing applies the program’s structure: the insurance premium in the payment while it applies, the escrow account, and no upfront premium. The buyer moves in within sixty days on a principal residence, and the servicer tracks the balance toward the cancellation thresholds.
A brokerage that prices the whole market.
Lendmire is a mortgage brokerage licensed for consumer lending in sixteen states, and on a conventional loan that buys three things: the file priced across several wholesale programs rather than one, the insurance structure and its exit explained before an offer is written, and the terms in writing from a licensed loan officer.
Several programs, one set of numbers
Before any recommendation, the Fort Worth file is priced across the wholesale programs Lendmire works with and run against FHA and VA on the same price, score, and down payment. The buyer sees the payment, the insurance line, and the cash to close for each, and the choice follows the figures.
The insurance explained before the offer
The premium and its exit are decided by the leverage and the score, and a buyer should know both before signing a contract. Lendmire states the structure for the Fort Worth purchase, shows the payment before and after cancellation, and explains the request and automatic thresholds.
Licensed, consumer-purpose, in writing
What this page shows are the agencies’ parameters and the wholesale overlays; what a specific Fort Worth loan gets is a written set of terms from a licensed loan officer after the review. Lendmire is a broker, never the lender.
Trusted by buyers & families alike.
Fort Worth conventional loan FAQs
Plain answers to the questions Fort Worth buyers ask most about conventional loans, in the order they usually ask them.
What is a conventional loan, and who is it for?
A conventional loan is a mortgage written to the rules of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac so the lender can sell it to them after closing; no government agency insures it, and a private insurer covers the top slice above the leverage threshold. It fits the Fort Worth buyer with a solid score, any down payment from the program minimum up, and any occupancy the agencies allow, including second homes and rentals.
How much do I need to put down on a conventional loan in Fort Worth?
A small share of the price for a first-time buyer, a little more for a repeat buyer, and twenty percent to skip the insurance. On a Fort Worth home at the median value the market section shows what the minimums come to in dollars.
What credit score do I need for a conventional loan?
The snapshot shows the floor. More useful than the number is what sits around it: a seasoned derogatory event is inside the rules after its waiting period, a thin file may need manual underwriting with tighter ratios, and the score drives the insurance premium on a Fort Worth loan.
How does private mortgage insurance work, and when does it end?
Three dates matter: the month the balance reaches the request threshold, when the borrower can ask the servicer to drop the premium with a good payment history; the month it reaches the termination threshold, when the servicer must drop it; and the midpoint of the term, the final backstop. Twenty percent down means none of this applies.
What is the conforming loan limit in Fort Worth?
There is a county limit, revised annually, and some counties carry a high-balance range above the standard figure. The loan officer confirms the current limit at pre-approval; above it, the jumbo program takes the file.
Can the down payment be a gift?
Yes. On a one-unit principal residence the entire down payment may come from a relative, a domestic partner, or a fiancé, documented with a gift letter stating that no repayment is expected and evidence of the transfer. On a second home or a two- to four-unit home above the threshold, part of the down payment must be the buyer’s own funds.
What debt-to-income ratio does a conventional loan allow?
Two ceilings: the higher one for automated approvals, the lower pair for manual underwriting. The housing payment counted includes the insurance while it applies, which is why cancellation lowers the ratio as well as the payment.
What are HomeReady, Home Possible, and HomeOne?
They are the agencies’ affordable programs: the same conforming loan with the top leverage, lower insurance coverage, and in two cases an income limit. A Fort Worth buyer who qualifies usually pays less than on the standard conventional structure at the same leverage.
Can I get a conventional loan after a bankruptcy or foreclosure?
Yes, once the waiting period in the snapshot table has run: each bankruptcy chapter, a foreclosure, a deed-in-lieu, and a short sale carry their own period, measured from discharge, dismissal, or the completion of the event, and several are shortened by documented extenuating circumstances. The periods are longer than FHA’s or VA’s.
Can the seller pay my closing costs on a conventional loan?
Within the cap for the combined loan-to-value, yes: closing costs, prepaids, and points. The down payment is separate and must be the buyer’s own funds or a gift; the seller can cover the rest up to the cap.
The Fort Worth conforming file, priced across the market and explained plainly.
When you are ready, a Fort Worth review sizes the loan, settles the program and the insurance structure, and produces written terms. Nothing on this page commits anyone to lend.
This guide covers Fort Worth — for the statewide guidelines, markets, and scenarios, see Conventional Loans in Texas, part of Lendmire’s conventional loan program.
Nearby markets in Texas: Dallas · Austin · Houston · San Antonio · El Paso
Related programs: FHA Loans · Jumbo Loans · Refinance Loans