Will a New Appraisal Remove PMI?
A new appraisal can remove PMI when it shows your current loan-to-value at or below 80%, even if the amortization schedule says you are years away. Expect to pay $300 to $600, meet your servicer's seasoning requirement (often 12 to 24 months of payments), and submit the cancellation request in writing. Success odds are highest after strong local appreciation or value-adding improvements.
The amortization schedule says your PMI ends in six years. The housing market says your home is worth 20% more than when you bought it. The appraisal is how you make the market's opinion count. Here is how value-based PMI removal works, what it costs, and how to avoid paying for an appraisal that fails.
Why an appraisal can beat the schedule
The statutory 80% and 78% thresholds use the original home value, but servicers run a separate value-based process: if a current appraisal shows your loan-to-value at or below 80%, they will generally cancel PMI on request. In appreciating markets this shortcut can end PMI years ahead of the amortization schedule. The math is simple. You owe $350,000 on a home that now appraises at $440,000. That is 79.5% loan-to-value, and PMI can go, even though the original schedule had you paying for five more years.
Seasoning requirements
Servicers protect against inflated early appraisals with seasoning rules. Many require at least 12 months of payments before considering a value-based request, and some require 24 months, with stricter loan-to-value thresholds in the first two years. For example, a servicer might require 75% current loan-to-value for requests in years one and two, relaxing to 80% afterward. These are servicer policies layered on top of the federal minimums, so the only authoritative answer comes from your servicer. Call and ask for their PMI cancellation requirements in writing before you spend money on an appraisal.
Costs and who orders the appraisal
Expect $300 to $600 for a residential appraisal, paid by you. Critically, many servicers require you to use their approved appraisal process rather than hiring your own appraiser, and an outside appraisal you order independently may not be accepted. Ask the servicer how to initiate their valuation process. Against a $150 monthly PMI bill, the appraisal pays for itself in two to four months, which makes this one of the highest-return phone calls in personal finance.
Improving your odds
Do homework before you commit the fee. Pull recent comparable sales in your neighborhood from public records or a real estate agent; if similar homes are not selling near the value you need, wait. Time the appraisal after completed improvements, not during a renovation, since appraisers value finished work. Tidy the property and provide the appraiser with a list of upgrades and their dates. And check your balance first with the calculator at the top of this page: you need the appraised value to be at least 1.25 times your balance for an 80% result.
When the appraisal route is weak
Skip the appraisal if your market has been flat or declining, since a low appraisal wastes the fee and PMI continues. Skip it if you have not met the seasoning requirement. And skip it if you have a second mortgage or home equity line, because subordinate liens can disqualify the request regardless of value. In those cases, extra principal payments toward the statutory 80% threshold are the more reliable path.
The request process, step by step
First, confirm your balance and estimate the needed value. Second, get the servicer's written cancellation requirements, including seasoning and their appraisal process. Third, complete the servicer's valuation. Fourth, submit the written cancellation request with the valuation. Fifth, confirm in writing that PMI is removed and check the next statement to verify the monthly amount dropped. Keep every document; servicer errors on PMI are common enough that a paper trail pays.
Broker price opinions vs full appraisals
Some servicers accept a broker price opinion, a lighter valuation by a real estate agent costing $100 to $200, instead of a full appraisal for PMI decisions. Others insist on the full interior appraisal. The lighter option saves money but carries less weight if the value is borderline, and not all servicers accept it, so confirm before ordering. Never pay for either valuation until the servicer confirms in writing which type they require and through what channel. An appraisal ordered outside the servicer's process is the most common way borrowers waste $400.
Preparing for the appraiser
Appraisers value what they can see and document. Before the visit, complete any half-finished repairs, since deferred maintenance gets noted and discounted. Compile a one-page list of improvements with dates and approximate costs: roof, HVAC, kitchen, baths, flooring, additions. Pull three to six comparable sales from the last six months to hand over; appraisers consider submitted comps and it signals you are serious. Clean thoroughly, because condition adjustments are subjective and presentation influences them. None of this manufactures value, but it ensures the value you have is fully recognized, which is all the process requires.
Timing the appraisal to the market
Appraisals are backward-looking: they rely on comparable sales from the prior three to six months. This creates timing opportunities. After a strong spring selling season with rising prices, comparable sales support higher valuations, making early summer an attractive window. After a quiet winter, the comps are thinner and softer. If your market is clearly appreciating, waiting two or three months for fresh high comps to record can be the difference between 81% and 79%. Conversely, do not wait if you already clear 80% comfortably; every month of delay is another PMI payment. Check recent nearby sales before you schedule, and strike when the data is on your side.
What happens after approval
Approval is not the finish line; verification is. The servicer should send written confirmation that PMI is cancelled and the effective date. Check the next monthly statement to confirm the PMI line is gone and the payment dropped by the expected amount. If PMI persists, call immediately with your confirmation letter in hand; billing departments correct documented errors quickly but rarely self-correct. Keep the appraisal, the request, and the confirmation together for the life of the loan, since servicing transfers to new companies are a common moment for cancelled PMI to mysteriously reappear.
Data current as of October 2026. PMI rules follow the Homeowners Protection Act of 1998 and CFPB guidance; FHA rules follow HUD. Confirm your loan's terms with your servicer.