We had a similar issue with one of our projects a couple years back. Thought we were comfortably above the threshold, but the appraisal came in just shy—talk about frustrating. Neighborhood comps can swing wildly depending on recent sales or even seasonal timing. I'd second the advice to wait until you're clearly past that line; otherwise, you're just tossing money at appraisals and getting nowhere. Hang in there though... once you finally ditch PMI, it's such a relief.
Been there myself—appraisals can be a total wildcard. Couple quick thoughts:
- Check recent local sales yourself first; sometimes waiting just a few months makes a huge difference.
- If prices seem stable, maybe consider paying down principal slightly to cross that line comfortably?
Either way, you'll get there soon enough...and yeah, ditching PMI feels awesome.
"sometimes waiting just a few months makes a huge difference."
Couldn't agree more with this. When I was in your shoes, I held off about four months after checking local comps and ended up comfortably over the 20% threshold. It felt like forever at the time, but looking back, it was definitely worth the wait. PMI isn't cheap, and getting rid of it frees up cash flow nicely. Hang in there—you're closer than you think.
"It felt like forever at the time, but looking back, it was definitely worth the wait."
Totally get this feeling... I've seen clients eager to drop PMI jump the gun a bit early, only to realize later that waiting just a bit longer would've made a huge difference financially. A few months can mean better comps and more equity—plus, ditching PMI frees up cash for other goals. Patience pays off big-time here, even if it feels frustrating in the moment. Hang tight, you're almost there.
"Patience pays off big-time here, even if it feels frustrating in the moment."
Yeah, patience usually does pay off, but honestly, PMI can feel like throwing money into a black hole every month. I get why people jump the gun—it's tempting to ditch it ASAP. Still, I've seen folks rush into refinancing or appraisal too early and end up kicking themselves later when they realize waiting just a bit longer would've meant better equity numbers.
Had a client last year who was dead set on dropping PMI immediately. We ran the numbers, and it turned out waiting just four more months would put them comfortably over the 20% threshold. They grumbled a bit (okay, a lot), but stuck it out. In the end, they saved a nice chunk of change. So yeah, skepticism aside, sometimes the annoying wait really is worth it... even if it doesn't feel that way at first.
