When you can ask to cancel PMI

The two dates in one paragraph

You can ask when the balance reaches 80% of the original value. The automatic month is later: 78% of that same value, on the original schedule, with no extra. The PMI removal calculator finds both. Extra principal, a payment every two weeks, and a lump sum move only the request earlier. Monthly PMI is a dollar amount. It does not reduce the balance, and the original value does not grow.

When to use

Use the PMI removal calculator when the question is “when does the balance reach 80% of this original value, and when does the original schedule reach 78%?”

The mortgage payment calculator is a different question. It adds the monthly PMI you type on top of principal and interest for the whole term. Interest saved from extra principal belongs on the mortgage payoff calculator. That page leaves taxes, insurance, and PMI out on purpose, so it will not show the PMI you stop owing at the request.

The formula in plain English

Principal and interest uses the standard fixed-rate payment:

M = P × [r(1+r)^n] / [(1+r)^n − 1]

r is the annual rate divided by 12. n is the term in years times 12.

The request is the first month the balance is at or under 80% of the original value, on the path you pick. The automatic month is the first month the balance is at or under 78% of that value on the scheduled payment alone. PMI until the request is the monthly amount times the request month. The same engine runs the balance. PMI never enters it.

A worked example

The page opens on an original value of $400,000 and a $360,000 balance at 6.5% for 30 years, with monthly PMI of $120 and an extra $200. Scheduled principal and interest is near $2,275.

With no extra, the balance reaches $320,000 (80%) in month 95 and $312,000 (78%) in month 109. PMI of $120 until month 95 is $11,400.

The $200 extra moves the request to month 64. PMI until that month is $7,680. Month 109 stays where it was. Every two weeks, with no extra and no lump, puts the request in month 66. A lump of $0 leaves the lump column on month 95. Those three columns do not add together.

How to read the result

The request is the month you can ask on the path you picked, including the extra and the lump together. The automatic month is the original schedule. A higher monthly PMI changes the dollar total until the request. It does not change either month, and it does not change how fast the balance falls.

Scenario B is a second balance, rate, or extra. It is not a second cancellation rule. Both scenarios keep the original value you type. Neither one grows that value.

Common mistakes

Expecting the extra to move the automatic month. Extra principal, every two weeks, and a lump sum move only the request. The page keeps 78% on the schedule with no extra.

Typing PMI as a percent of the loan. The field is “Monthly PMI”. It wants a dollar amount. That amount sits outside the balance.

Looking for the request month on the mortgage payoff calculator. Extra payments there can shorten the term and cut interest. They do not price the PMI you would stop paying at 80% of original value.

Raising the original value as the years pass. This model holds the value you type. A higher value makes 80% a higher balance, so the request comes sooner only because the threshold moved, not because the home appreciated inside the formula.

FAQ

When can I ask to cancel PMI?

On this page, in the month the balance reaches 80% of the original value. The PMI removal calculator counts that month. It does not file the request.

Does extra principal move the automatic month?

No. The automatic month is 78% of the original value on the original schedule. Extra principal, every two weeks, and a lump sum leave that month where it is.

Does the monthly PMI reduce the balance?

No. It is a fixed dollar amount. The page multiplies it by the request month and keeps it out of the amortization.

Is this financial advice?

No. FinTools4U guides and calculators are for education. They do not replace a servicer’s cancellation quote or advice about your loan.

Related guides

The mortgage payment guide is principal and interest, plus tax, insurance, and a PMI amount that stays for the whole term. The mortgage payoff guide is extra principal and the interest it saves, with PMI left out.

Try it with your figures

Open the PMI removal calculator. Set the original value, the balance, the rate, and the term. Type monthly PMI if you want the cost until the request, and read that date rather than the payoff chart. For interest saved from extra principal, open the mortgage payoff calculator and leave PMI out of that comparison.