Conventional Loan Limit and When You Need a Jumbo

For 2026, the largest conventional conforming loan on a one-unit home is $832,750 in most of the country and up to $1,249,125 in counties designated high-cost. Borrow more than your county's limit and the loan becomes a jumbo, which comes with stricter rules. In Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the baseline itself is $1,249,125. These figures come from the Federal Housing Finance Agency's 2026 announcement. The baseline rose $26,250 from 2025's $806,500. Some lenders are already moving ahead of next year's figures: PennyMac began accepting one-unit conventional loans up to $850,000 on September 16, 2026, based on anticipated 2027 limits and ahead of FHFA's official announcement.

The limit applies to the loan amount, not the price of the home. A $900,000 house can still be bought with a conforming loan if your down payment brings the loan to $832,750 or less. That makes the limit most important to buyers shopping near the top of their local market. It determines which loan you get, how much you need to put down and what credit score a lender will expect.

FHFA sets the limit each year under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, using its House Price Index. The 2026 increase of 3.26% matched the rise in that index between the third quarter of 2024 and the third quarter of 2025. The agency announced the 2026 figures on November 25, 2025.

The limit exists because Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are legally barred from buying mortgages above it. A lender that makes a larger loan has no agency buyer for it. The lender either keeps the loan on its books or sells it to private investors, and so it writes its own rules for that loan.

In expensive counties, the limit can go as high as 150% of the baseline, which is where the $1,249,125 ceiling comes from. Designations are made county by county based on local home prices. For 2026, limits rose in every county except 32.

When to check again: FHFA's 2027 figures are expected in late November 2026. If you plan to close in early 2027 and your loan sits near the line, check the new number before you settle on a price.

Finding your county: The FHFA conforming loan limit page has an interactive map and a downloadable county list. Outside the high-cost counties, the limit is the $832,750 baseline.

When you do the down payment math. Consider a $900,000 home in a baseline county. With 10% down, the loan is $810,000, which is conforming. With 5% down, the loan is $855,000, which makes it a jumbo. The house is the same in both cases, but you would be applying for a different product. With 20% down, the highest price that keeps the loan conforming is about $1,040,900.

When a lender quotes a higher limit than FHFA's. On September 10, 2026, Rocket Mortgage raised its internal conforming limit to $845,000 in the 48 contiguous states and $1,267,500 in Alaska and Hawaii. CrossCountry Mortgage matched the $845,000 figure the same day. On September 16, 2026, Pennymac went further, raising its limit to $850,000 for 1-unit properties and $1,275,000 in Alaska and Hawaii. All three lenders moved ahead of FHFA's 2027 announcement. If your loan falls between $832,750 and $850,000, some lenders will treat it as conforming now and others will not, so ask each lender which limit it uses.

When you compare rates. A jumbo is not automatically the more expensive loan. According to Mortgage Bankers Association data cited by Real Cost Report, the 30-year fixed rate for the week ending September 4, 2026 averaged 6.74% on jumbo loans and 6.85% on conforming loans. Banks sometimes price jumbos aggressively to win high-income customers. That was one week of averages, though, and the rate you would be offered depends on your credit and your lender.

Over the limit: what a jumbo asks of you

The jump from conforming to jumbo matters less for the interest rate than for the requirements you have to meet.

• Down payment: Jumbos usually require 10 to 20% down, according to Bankrate, and some lenders ask for up to 30%. A conforming loan can go as low as 3% down.
• Credit: Most jumbo lenders look for a score of 700 or higher, though a few accept 660. Conforming loans can start at 620.
• Reserves: Expect to show 6 to 12 months of mortgage payments (principal, interest, taxes and insurance) in savings.
• Debt-to-income: Jumbos typically cap this ratio at 36 to 43%. Conforming loans can go up to 50% when other parts of your application are strong.

A jumbo is the wrong loan for most first-time buyers who are counting on a small down payment or a credit score in the 600s. If you have a 700+ score, several months of reserves and at least 10% down, a jumbo is a realistic option, and it is worth getting quotes on both loan types.

FHA sets its own county limits, and they are lower in lower-cost areas. HUD's 2026 limits start at a floor of $541,287 for a one-unit home. The floor applies wherever 115% of the local median price falls below it. FHA's ceiling of $1,249,125 is the same as the conforming high-cost ceiling. In a baseline county, a conventional loan can therefore be almost $300,000 larger than an FHA loan. How the two loan types compare on everything else is covered in our breakdown of FHA vs conventional loans.

FHFA publishes its own 2 to 4 unit conforming limits alongside the one-unit figures. For 2026 the baseline limits are $1,066,250 for two units, $1,288,800 for three and $1,601,750 for four, with higher ceilings in high-cost areas, per NAHB. Some lenders, such as PennyMac, have already adopted higher anticipated 2027 limits, so if you are buying a duplex or triplex, check FHFA's county file and ask your lender which limits it is using.

If your target price puts the loan just over your county's limit, you have three ways to bring it back under.

1. Put more down. Every extra dollar of down payment is a dollar off the loan. Subtract your county limit from the price you expect to pay, and the result is the minimum down payment that keeps you conforming.
2. Shop a notch lower. A small price reduction can be enough. On a loan $20,000 over the limit, a $20,000 lower offer keeps you conforming, and so does $20,000 more cash.
3. Ask about a piggyback second. Some lenders pair a smaller first mortgage with a second loan so the first stays under the limit. We did not have current terms to compare, so ask each lender for the combined cost of both loans against the cost of a single jumbo.

Once the loan is conforming, you face the standard conventional requirements. The details, including private mortgage insurance, are in what it takes to qualify for a conventional loan.