You're definitely not being overly cautious—seen this happen plenty of times myself. A few quick thoughts from experience:
- Market timing matters a lot. I've had clients jump the gun on appraisals, only to find out their neighborhood comps weren't quite there yet. Waiting another 6-12 months could've made all the difference.
- Appraisals aren't cheap, and if you're already planning to refinance or sell soon, it might not be worth the hassle and expense.
- On the flip side, if you're staying put long-term and your local market is steadily appreciating, ditching PMI sooner rather than later usually pays off nicely.
Had a client last year who was convinced their home value had skyrocketed (thanks Zillow 🙄), but the appraisal came back disappointingly low. They ended up waiting another year, and sure enough, values caught up. Patience can be key here—you're smart to weigh your options carefully.
"Appraisals aren't cheap, and if you're already planning to refinance or sell soon, it might not be worth the hassle and expense."
Good points overall, but I'd add a slight counter here. Even if you're considering selling or refinancing soon-ish, getting rid of PMI can sometimes boost your equity position enough to improve your refinance terms or negotiating leverage. Had a client recently who bit the bullet on an appraisal—turned out their equity was higher than expected, and it opened up better loan options. Just something else to consider...
I'm usually pretty skeptical about extra costs like appraisals, but I had a similar situation last year. Thought we were nowhere near ditching PMI, but our neighbor's house sold way higher than expected, so we decided to gamble on an appraisal. Surprisingly, our equity jumped enough to drop PMI early...ended up saving more monthly than the appraisal cost overall. Not always gonna work out that way, but sometimes it's worth a shot.
Had a similar experience myself—thought the appraisal was just another annoying fee, but it ended up being a smart move. PMI can really add up over time, so sometimes it's worth rolling the dice...glad it worked out for you too.
I get where you're coming from, but honestly, ditching PMI isn't always the slam dunk people make it out to be. Sure, appraisals can pay off, but I've seen cases where the appraisal came in lower than expected, and folks ended up stuck with PMI anyway—plus the appraisal fee on top. Sometimes it's smarter to just wait it out until you've built enough equity naturally. Not saying it's never worth it, just that it's not always the no-brainer move people think...
