{
  "slug": "pmi",
  "title": "PMI Calculator",
  "heading": "PMI (Mortgage Insurance) Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/pmi",
  "summary": "Monthly PMI cost and when you can drop it.",
  "description": "PMI automatically terminates at 78% loan-to-value on the original schedule, but you can request removal at 80% — often years earlier if your home has appreciated.",
  "formula": "PMI = Loan × annual PMI rate ÷ 12; drops when LTV reaches 80%.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=pmi",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "price",
      "label": "Home price",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 400000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "down",
      "label": "Down payment",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 30000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "rate",
      "label": "Mortgage rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 6.6,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "term",
      "label": "Term (years)",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 30,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 5,
      "max": 40
    },
    {
      "id": "pmiRate",
      "label": "Annual PMI rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 0.6,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 2
    },
    {
      "id": "appreciation",
      "label": "Annual home appreciation",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 3,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": -5,
      "max": 15
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "monthlyPmi",
      "label": "Monthly PMI",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "years",
      "label": "Years until PMI can be removed",
      "format": "decimal",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "totalPmi",
      "label": "Total PMI you will pay",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "ltv",
      "label": "Starting loan-to-value",
      "format": "percent",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "payment",
      "label": "Payment including PMI",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "months",
      "label": "Months of PMI",
      "format": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Home price: 400000 $",
      "Down payment: 30000 $",
      "Mortgage rate: 6.6 %",
      "Term (years): 30",
      "Annual PMI rate: 0.6 %",
      "Annual home appreciation: 3 %"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Monthly PMI: $185.00",
      "Years until PMI can be removed: 3.5",
      "Total PMI you will pay: $7,770.00",
      "Starting loan-to-value: 92.5%",
      "Payment including PMI: $2,548.04",
      "Months of PMI: 42"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter home price ($).",
      "Enter down payment ($).",
      "Enter mortgage rate (%).",
      "Enter term (years).",
      "Enter annual pmi rate (%).",
      "Enter annual home appreciation (%).",
      "Read your monthly pmi on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "price": 240000,
        "down": 18000,
        "rate": 6.6,
        "term": 20,
        "pmiRate": 0.36,
        "appreciation": 1.7999999999999998
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "price": 400000,
        "down": 30000,
        "rate": 6.6,
        "term": 30,
        "pmiRate": 0.6,
        "appreciation": 3
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "price": 640000,
        "down": 48000,
        "rate": 6.6,
        "term": 40,
        "pmiRate": 0.96,
        "appreciation": 4.800000000000001
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "How does the pmi (mortgage insurance) calculator work?",
      "a": "PMI automatically terminates at 78% loan-to-value on the original schedule, but you can request removal at 80% — often years earlier if your home has appreciated. The underlying maths is: PMI = Loan × annual PMI rate ÷ 12; drops when LTV reaches 80%."
    },
    {
      "q": "What do I need to enter?",
      "a": "6 values: home price, down payment, mortgage rate, term (years), annual pmi rate, and annual home appreciation. Each field starts with a sensible default, so you can change one number at a time and watch the result move."
    },
    {
      "q": "What does the monthly pmi result mean?",
      "a": "It is returned as a money amount in US dollars and updates live as you edit the inputs, so you can compare two or three versions of a scenario in a few seconds."
    },
    {
      "q": "Is this calculator free, and do I need an account?",
      "a": "Yes, it's free, and no account is required. Nothing you type is stored on our servers — the maths runs entirely in your browser."
    },
    {
      "q": "How accurate is the result?",
      "a": "It applies the standard formula exactly, so the arithmetic is precise. Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them."
    },
    {
      "q": "Who is this tool for?",
      "a": "It's built for anyone comparing money scenarios before committing — budgeting a payment, sanity-checking a quote, or seeing what a change in rate or term actually costs."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/closing-costs",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/rent-vs-buy",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/home-equity"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — PMI Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/pmi)"
}