Current FHA cash-out guidelines, updated from one source.
These are HUD’s numbers for a cash-out, served from Lendmire’s guideline source and rewritten on this page whenever the handbook or the wholesale overlays move: how much of the adjusted value the base loan may reach, how long the home must have been owned and occupied, what the two premiums cost, and what the credit profile and the ratios must show. The premium table follows the cards.
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
HUD counts twelve months of ownership and occupancy as a principal residence before the case number is assigned, and it reads the mortgage history for that year: every payment within the month due. Inherited homes occupied since the inheritance skip the wait; nothing skips the payment test.
Plus an annual premium, charged monthly, for eleven years at cash-out leverage
The insurance has an upfront half and a monthly half: 1.75% of the base loan once, usually financed, and 0.50% a year on most thirty-year cash-out loans, collected with the payment for eleven years. The table beneath the cards lists the rate for larger base loans and for shorter terms.
Ratios of 31/43 by reference, higher with compensating factors
Three score figures and two ratio pairs: HUD’s 500 floor, the 580 full-financing line, the 580 wholesale overlay; ratios of 31/43 by reference and 40/50 at the top tier. The score decides the cost of the loan as well as its availability.
| 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.
Guidelines, not an offer. The cap, the occupancy rule, the premium schedule, the credit floors, and the ratio tiers are HUD parameters and wholesale overlays read from Lendmire’s guideline source on the date shown, subject to change without notice and to full underwriting. Payment figures from the calculator are estimates built on a published weekly benchmark rate, not quotes. Lendmire LLC, NMLS #2371349, broker, not lender. Not legal or tax advice.
What an FHA cash-out refinance is — and how the file is qualified.
Here is the program in the order it matters: the loan and the disbursement, the occupancy and payment-history rules, the insurance and its span, and the choice between FHA and its alternatives for a Bellevue home.
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
HUD treats any refinance that returns more than a token amount of cash, or that pays off a lien taken after the purchase, as a cash-out; the rate-and-term refinance is the other path and reaches higher leverage because it returns nothing. One FHA Roster appraisal, one case number, one closing, one rescission period, and then the money.
The occupancy rule and the payment history
The case number date, not the closing date, is where HUD measures the year, and the year counts occupancy as well as ownership. A Bellevue home you lived in throughout qualifies; a home you rented out for part of the year does not until a full year of occupancy has passed. A loan seasoned less than a year must show every payment on time, and no non-occupant co-borrower may be added.
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 Bellevue 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 Bellevue home on the same value, balance, and cash before recommending one.
The order matters. HUD caps the base loan before the premium is added, so the financed premium can push the total above the cap while the base loan stays under it; the cash is measured on the base loan, never on the total. Ask for less and the loan shrinks; ask for more and the calculator reports the ceiling.
Where Bellevue’s equity sits — and how FHA cash-out fits.
Three Census measures tell the Bellevue equity story: the owner-household count, which is the pool of possible borrowers; the median home value, which sets how much a cap can release; and the median income, which sets the payment a typical household carries.
Read the figures as backdrop. Where homes were bought years ago, the distance between today’s value and the old balance is the FHA cash-out’s raw material, and that distance is a local fact.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Distinct Bellevue neighborhoods, distinct FHA files.
Bellevue is not one housing stock, and HUD’s rules meet each kind differently: the age of a home shapes the appraisal’s condition review, the type decides eligibility, and the purchase date decides whether the occupancy year has passed. The cards below take the kinds one at a time.
High-value homes near the limit
In the pricier parts of Bellevue the base loan can approach the FHA county mortgage limit, which stops the loan before the leverage does, and a larger base loan also pays the higher annual premium tier. A file above the limit moves to the conventional or jumbo program. Roughly 32,234 Bellevue households own their homes on the latest Census estimate — 52% of all households, the pool an FHA cash-out refinance draws on.
Newer infill and recent purchases
A Bellevue home bought in the last few years still carries most of its purchase balance, and the cash under the cap can be small even after the occupancy year passes; a home owned under a year is also valued at the lower of the appraisal and the price paid plus improvements. About 48% of Bellevue’s households rent — roughly 29,743 renter households on the latest Census estimate.
Two- to four-unit homes, owner-occupied
The older duplexes and small multi-unit buildings of Bellevue qualify for an FHA cash-out when the owner lives in one unit: the cap is the same as for a house, the other units’ rent counts under HUD’s rules, and the appraisal carries a rent schedule. On a Bellevue home at the median value, an FHA cash-out refinance at the program cap finances up to $1,072,000 before the financed upfront premium — the existing balance comes off the top, and the rest is the cash available before closing costs.
Condominiums in approved projects
Attached housing makes up much of Bellevue, and an FHA cash-out on a unit begins with the building: HUD must have approved the project, or the unit must clear single-unit approval, before anyone talks about value. Older associations with an approval on file need no further project review; new or investor-heavy projects need the review first. Bellevue counts a population near 152K within the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA area.
Long-held close-in homes
Near the core of Bellevue, houses bought a decade or more ago hold the widest gap between value and balance, and that gap is what an FHA cash-out draws on. The appraiser reads condition as carefully as value on an older house, so a short repair list before closing is common. The median owner-occupied home value in Bellevue runs near $1,340,300 on the latest Census estimate.
Homes bought with FHA years ago
Plenty of Bellevue 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 Bellevue sits near $165,576 on the latest Census estimate.
The equity differs by block in Bellevue; the FHA rules do not. The appraisal and the old balance decide the cash on each house, and HUD decides everything else identically.
Four ways Bellevue homeowners put equity to work with FHA.
An insured cash-out is a tool, and the purpose decides whether it is the right one. These four purposes are the ones a Bellevue review sees most, each with the point that settles it.
Renovate or repair the home
A roof, a furnace, a kitchen, or an addition can be paid for from the proceeds without a construction loan or a draw schedule. The FHA appraiser values the Bellevue home as it stands and may require specific repairs before closing, so the plan is built on the equity already there and on whatever the appraisal flags.
Consolidate higher-cost debt into one insured payment
Retiring a stack of balances with one insured loan changes two things at once for a Bellevue household: the monthly outlay falls, and the ratio HUD measures is computed after the payoffs leave the file. The home now secures what was unsecured, and the balance runs on a new full term, which is the part to weigh before signing.
Leave a loan whose structure no longer fits
Some Bellevue 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.
Capitalize a business or an investment
Working capital drawn from a Bellevue 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 Bellevue home before requesting a quote.
The calculator follows HUD’s arithmetic for a Bellevue home: cap times value for the base ceiling, payoff subtracted, cash request tested against the remainder, upfront premium stacked on the base, the total amortized over the term at the rate shown, the monthly premium and the escrows added, and the payment measured against income and other debts.
Bellevue FHA cash-out estimate
Seeded with a Bellevue median value, a typical balance, and a round cash request; change any field.
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 $1,340,000 home value near Bellevue’s median owner-occupied value, a $737,000 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.
A Bellevue homeowner can reach the same equity three ways, and the differences are structural: an FHA cash-out insures the loan and accepts a wider credit profile; a conventional cash-out reaches the same leverage with no premium at that leverage for a stronger file; a home equity line sits behind the first mortgage and prices only the new money. The cards compare them.
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 Bellevue owner who qualifies, it is usually the cheaper loan over its life. See Lendmire’s conventional cash-out refinance program.
The line prices only the new money and leaves the first mortgage untouched. It draws in stages, the payment during the draw period is often interest only, and there is no insurance premium; the credit standard is the line program’s own. The trade is a payment that can change and a second lien rather than one loan. See Lendmire’s home equity line of credit.
Choose FHA when the score, a credit event, or the ratio keeps the file out of the conventional programs and the home has been the principal residence for a year; choose conventional when the file clears its floor, because the premium is avoided; choose the line when the first mortgage should stay and the need is modest or staged. Veterans: see the VA cash-out program.
What to prepare for a Bellevue scenario review.
The documents are the ordinary refinance set plus two that HUD’s rules add, the occupancy evidence and the year of mortgage history; here is what a Bellevue FHA cash-out review draws on.
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 Bellevue 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 Bellevue file clean and fundable.
Occupancy first, premium second, value third; after those, a Bellevue FHA cash-out is documentation.
- Price the premium: The upfront premium is financed on top of the capped base loan; the monthly premium runs eleven years.
- Confirm the occupancy clock: Twelve months as the principal residence before the case number; inheritance is the exception.
- Match the occupancy: Owner-occupied two- to four-unit homes qualify at the cap, with the other units’ rent counted.
The premium rides on the loan and inside the payment
Price the insurance as two numbers, not one: the share of the base loan added to the balance at closing, and the share of the balance collected every month for eleven years at cash-out leverage. On a Bellevue home the calculator shows both, and the comparison with a conventional loan is only honest when both are in the figure.
Twelve months owned and occupied, with a clean payment history
Ownership and occupancy are counted together: the home must have been the borrower’s principal residence for the twelve months before the case number, shown by the deed and by records at the address, and every mortgage payment in that year must have been made within the month it was due. A Bellevue owner who rented the home out during that year waits.
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 Bellevue 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 Bellevue review lays both out so the choice is deliberate.
Condominiums need HUD project or single-unit approval
A Bellevue condominium file begins with a question the owner cannot answer alone: is the project HUD-approved, or can the unit clear single-unit approval. The association’s documents, owner-occupancy share, reserves, insurance, and any litigation decide it, and the answer is found before the appraisal is ordered.
From a Bellevue scenario review to cash at closing.
From the first conversation about a Bellevue home to the wire after rescission, the file passes four gates, each with its own decision.
Scenario review
The review is where the Bellevue owner learns whether the file fits HUD, what the premiums add, and whether the conventional cash-out or a line of credit would reach the same cash for less. It ends with written terms on a conservative value, and nothing is ordered until the owner agrees the plan is worth an appraisal.
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 Bellevue 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 Bellevue 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 the closing table the Bellevue owner signs the note and the security instrument and the costs are settled; the rescission window then runs, and when it closes the settlement agent pays the old loans, records the new one, and wires the cash. The first payment, premium included, is due at the start of the second month after funding.
A brokerage built around equity lending.
Bellevue owners bring the file here because Lendmire arranges the FHA cash-out, the conventional cash-out, and the line, places each file across the wholesale programs rather than one lender’s sheet, and says plainly when the premium is worth paying and when it is not.
Every route, one review
No owner is steered toward the one product a lender happens to offer. Each route is run on the same value, balance, and cash, each is costed to open and to carry, and the one the numbers favor for the Bellevue home is the one recommended. The owner chooses with the figures in hand, not with a pitch.
Placed across wholesale programs
HUD writes the rules; each wholesale lender adds its own overlays and its own cost. The Bellevue file goes where the score, the leverage, and the property fit best, and the terms the owner receives come from that placement rather than from the only desk in the building.
Terms in writing, before any fee
Written terms come first and fees come after: the Bellevue owner sees the base loan, the premiums, the cash after costs, the payment, and the ratios on a conservative value before the appraisal is ordered, so a plan that cannot close never costs an appraisal fee.
Trusted by homeowners & families alike.
Bellevue FHA cash-out refinance FAQs
What a Bellevue loan officer hears about FHA cash-outs, answered plainly and without the figures that belong in the snapshot and the calculator above.
What is an FHA cash-out refinance, and who is it for?
A refinance that pays you and is backed by HUD: new note, new term, a balance that includes the cash and the upfront premium, one payment with the monthly premium inside. Principal residences only, and best suited to the file that needs flexibility on credit.
How much cash can I take out with an FHA refinance?
Always less than the equity: the cap stops the base loan short of full value, and the payoff and costs come out before the cash. A home owned for years with a small balance can release a substantial sum; a Bellevue home bought recently with HUD’s minimum investment may release little until the value rises or the balance falls.
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 Bellevue home.
What credit score do I need for an FHA cash-out refinance?
A program figure in the snapshot, with a lender free to set its own floor above it. The score also sets the cost tier, so a borrower who can raise it over a few months sometimes waits; the review says whether that changes the placement for a Bellevue file.
Can I take cash out of a duplex or a rental with an FHA loan?
A two- to four-unit home qualifies when you live in one unit as your principal residence, at the same cap as a house, with the rent from the other units counted under HUD’s rules and a rent schedule in the appraisal. A rental you do not live in, or a second home, is not eligible for an FHA cash-out; the program insures principal residences only. Those files go to the conventional cash-out at the investment or second-home cap, which a Bellevue review prices on the same numbers.
What debt-to-income ratios does an FHA cash-out allow?
Begin at the reference pair, then add what the file can prove: verified reserves, a small rise in the housing payment, residual income, or no discretionary debt. Each factor opens a higher tier, and payoffs routed through the closing drop out of the calculation.
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 Bellevue owner.
Are there restrictions on what I can use the cash for?
No. HUD places no limit on what the proceeds pay for: consolidation, renovation, tuition, a reserve, a business, anything lawful. A payoff is documented only when the retired debt is being excluded from the ratio; otherwise the use never enters the file. What a Bellevue owner should remember is that the home secures the money however it is spent, and that nothing on this page is tax advice.
How long does an FHA cash-out refinance take?
The appraisal and the title work set the pace, a repair finding can lengthen it, and the rescission window adds a short wait after signing before the cash arrives. A loan officer gives a realistic timeline for the specific file at the review instead of a generic promise.
A Bellevue FHA cash-out sized to the value, the balance, and the cap.
A Bellevue review confirms the ceiling, the premiums, the cash after costs, the payment, and the ratios on a conservative value. Lendmire is a broker licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages and is never the lender.
This guide covers Bellevue — 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: Seattle · Kent · Tacoma · Vancouver · Spokane
Related programs: Cash-Out Refinance · FHA Loans · HELOC