CONVENTIONAL LOAN

Since conventional loans are not backed by the government, you deal directly with the lender and don't need to wait for government approval.

Conventional loans come in two main types: fixed-rate or adjustable-rate. With a fixed-rate mortgage, your interest rate never changes. With an adjustable-rate mortgage, the rate changes with market conditions.

Once you have 20 percent equity in the home, you can request to cancel your Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI), which can you save hundreds of dollars on your monthly mortgage payment. 

Conventional loans are available for primary homes,  secondary homes and investment properties. 

You don’t always need to put 20% down to get a mortgage. Conventional loans can be approved with as little as 3% down.

Mortgage lenders require a minimum score of 620 to qualify for a conventional loan.

We care about debt-to-income ratios (DTI) instead of income. Your DTI ratio factors in other debts you have to pay each month, such as auto loans, student loans and credit card debt. 

Many fixed-rate conventional loans for a primary residence (not a second home or investment property) allow for a down payment as small as 3 percent or 5 percent.