A bright spot for Denver homebuyers.

After losing nearly 1,000 homes in the Marshall fire, the tight Denver housing market will remain a challenge in the new year.

Fortunately, there is a ray of hope when it comes to mortgages. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and Federal Housing Authority (FHA) have recently increased their maximum loan limits for 2022. 

New FHFA Conforming Loan Limits

The 2022 FHFA baseline Conforming Loan Limits (CLLs) for mortgages to be acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are based on the year-over-year (YOY) average housing price increase during the previous four quarters, which was 18.05% in 2021.1

As such, the 2022 CLL for single-family homes is now $647,200 for most of the United States. This means that qualified homebuyers can borrow up to this amount for conforming mortgages.2

Because housing prices vary across the nation, the CLL for higher-priced areas is based on 150% of the standard amount of $647,200, bringing that ceiling limit to $970,800. You can view county-specific 2022 CLLs on this map or read FAQs here.

New FHA National Loan Limits

Due to strong increases in median housing prices and required changes to Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA’s) “floor” and “ceiling” lending caps, the maximum loan limits for FHA forward mortgages will rise in 3,188 counties, while the loan limits will remain unchanged in 45 counties.3

“The increase in loan limits, commensurate with the increase in home prices, will allow qualified individuals and families to continue to access FHA-insured mortgages to achieve affordable home financing,” Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Housing and FHA, Lopa Kolluri, said.

The National Loan Limit floor for 2022 is $420,680 and is the highest amount you can borrow for an FHA-insured single-family mortgage in most areas of the U.S. This loan amount represents 65% of the recently announced FHFA Conforming Loan Limit (see above) and is available to borrowers in areas in which 115% of the median home price is less than the floor.

Any area where the loan limit exceeds this floor is considered a high-cost area. The maximum loan limit ceiling for high-cost areas is $970,800, which 150% of the 2022 CLL.

If you’re looking at a loan “in between” the floor and ceiling, you can find FHA loan cap amounts in this chart or search your county’s limits.

Learn more about FHFA loans or FHA-insured loans online — or call one of our knowledgeable lenders today.

¹ The Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) requires that the baseline CLL for the Enterprises be adjusted each year to reflect the change in the average U.S. home price. The Federal Housing Finance Agency regulates Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the 11 Federal Home Loan Banks. These government-sponsored enterprises provide more than $7.3 trillion in funding for the U.S. mortgage markets and financial institutions. Additional information is available at www.FHFA.gov, on Twitter, @FHFA, YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

² FHA is required by the National Housing Act (NHA), as amended by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA), to set Single Family forward mortgage loan limits at 115 percent of area median house prices, subject to a floor and a ceiling on the limits. In accordance with the NHA, FHA calculates forward mortgage limits by Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) and county.

https://www.hud.gov/press/press_releases_media_advisories/hud_no_21_197 , https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/OCHCO/documents/2021-28mlhsg.pdf