Conventional Mortgages in Florida

May 24, 2026

Written by Keith Meredith · NMLS 303217 · Division President, Black Rock Mortgage

Conventional financing is the most flexible mortgage program available. You can use it to buy a primary residence, a second home, or an investment property. With as little as 3% down for first time home buyers, and the only major program that lets you avoid mortgage insurance entirely with 20% down, it’s often the right call for borrowers with strong credit.

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3% Down

HomeReady and Home Possible programs allow first-time buyers to put as little as 3% down on a conventional loan

620+ FICO

Conventional middle FICO minimum. Higher scores unlock better pricing and lower PMI rates

$832,750

2026 conforming loan limit in most Florida counties. Coastal high-cost counties go up to $1,249,125

About Conventional Financing

A conventional mortgage in Florida is a great option to use when purchasing a home. It can be used for a primary residence, second home, or an investment property.

It’s also the only way you can avoid any form of mortgage insurance by putting down at least 20%. That will keep your payment to a minimum by eliminating the monthly mortgage insurance and upfront funding fee you incur when using an FHA, USDA, or VA financing. However conventional financing is still a great option with less money down. You can buy with as little as 3% down if you are a first time home buyer. With anything less than 20% down you will have private mortgage insurance, also known as PMI.

Conventional financing can be used for single family homes, multi-family homes (up to 4 units), condominiums, townhomes, and manufactured homes. With manufactured homes there are some different limitations so we recommend you visit our page dedicated to them.

Additionally you can build a new home with conventional financing. Currently the maximum loan limit for conventional financing for 2026 is $832,750 for a single family home in most counties within the United States. Loan amounts over this limit are considered Jumbo Loans. If you live in a high cost county the maximum conventional loan limit is $1,249,125. Use our county loan limit tool to see what the max conventional loan limit is for your area.

What does my credit score need to be with a conventional home loan?

Your credit score is a very important factor with conventional financing. The minimum credit score is 620 but the impact on your interest rate can vary substantially between a 620 credit score and a 780. Rate will be affected incrementally at various credit thresholds and loan to value ratios. Additionally if you aren’t putting 20% down, private mortgage insurance rates are affected as well. Conventional mortgages can be more strict when it comes to seasoning for bankruptcies, foreclosures, and short sales, but some exceptions apply when extenuating circumstances can be documented.

Waiting period for a chapter 7 bankruptcy is 4 years from the discharge date. With a chapter 13 bankruptcy the waiting period is 2 years from the discharge date.

If you had a short sale you must wait 4 years from the finalization of the sale. For a foreclosure you must wait 7 years from the completion of the foreclosure.

How does Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) work?

With a down payment less than 20% of the purchase price, you will have to have private mortgage insurance. For private mortgage insurance rates visit Essent or MGIC. PMI can either be paid by the borrower monthly or built into the interest rate. The benefit to borrower paid PMI is that it can be eliminated after a minimum of 7 years and a 78% loan to value ratio. Lender paid mortgage insurance is for the life of the loan and is paid through a higher interest rate.

Private mortgage insurance protects the lender in case of default. The better your credit score and the higher your down payment, the lower your PMI rate is. You can also avoid PMI with a Piggyback mortgage with only 10% down. We have access to some of the cheapest PMI rates in the country through our preferred lender partner United Wholesale Mortgage.

PMI Cancels at 80% LTV – No Lifetime Mortgage Insurance

FHA carries mortgage insurance for the life of the loan – you pay it forever unless you refinance out. Conventional PMI cancels automatically when you reach 78% of original value, and you can request cancellation at 80%. On a $400,000 home that’s roughly $180/month back in your pocket once you hit 20% equity – and you keep that savings for the rest of the mortgage. For buyers planning to stay 5+ years, the lifetime difference is tens of thousands of dollars.

Investment Properties

Investment properties require a minimum of 15% down, but 20% is the standard. However your rate can improve with 25% down. Your interest rate will typically be higher in any case compared to a primary or secondary home loan as the risk is higher for the lender. Keep in mind that an appraisal for an investment property may cost a little more than typical because you may need to determine potential rent income as well.

If the unit is currently rented this income may be used to offset the liability for your debt ratios. The condition of the property must still be considered functional even though you are using conventional financing. If you’re looking to buy an investment property without needing to verify personal income a DSCR loan could be an option for you.

Second Home

You can purchase a second home utilizing conventional financing with as little as 10% down in Florida. This may be reduced in the future to 5% but it’s currently still at 10%. It’s a great option for soon to be retirees or families who just want to come play in the sunshine state. When purchasing a second home in Florida if you live in Florida the property can’t be too close to your primary residence unless the property has features that your primary residence doesn’t.

For example a home on waterfront, or even a home with some wide open spaces for recreation if your primary residence is on a small lot, these can be features that would qualify a home as a second home. A condo-tel is a common second home option but requires special financing.

Seller Concessions for Closing Costs

It’s possible to negotiate for the seller to contribute to the buyer’s closing costs using conventional financing. Below is a list of the allowable seller concessions for closing costs depending on down payment and property type.

75% LTV and lower = 9% allowable Seller’s concession
75.01 – 90% LTV = 6% allowable Seller’s concession
90.01 LTV and higher = 3% allowable Seller’s concession
For investment properties the max is 2%

Additionally, seller concessions can be used for a temporary rate buydown.

Escrows on Conventional Mortgages

Most lenders require you to have a 20% down payment to be able to waive escrows, we don’t. What does that mean? It means you can choose to pay your taxes and insurance separately, and not have it included in your payment each month. That’s waiving escrows. We can do it with as little as 5% down. You can choose to either waive property taxes, or just insurance, or both. This is a great feature for the flexibility to handle those items on your own terms, when you choose. It also creates some ease if you like to consistently shop for the best home owners insurance rates.

Self Employed Borrowers

If you are self employed it’s very possible that conventional financing could be the best route for you. Most self employed borrowers typically try to use the tax code to best of their advantage. That means we utilize all possible write offs. Underwriters unfortunately need to go off of the net income for self employed borrowers, not the gross income like w-2 wage earners.

There are certain deductions like depreciation and a percentage of your mileage deduction that can be added back in as usable income if you are using a schedule C. If you have an S corporation it’s also possible to add back in depreciation to your income, we would just need the full business tax returns. Additionally a portion of your meals and entertainment deduction can be added in as useable income.

One great advantage of being self employed for at least 5 years is that we can use 1 year of tax returns instead of averaging the past 2 years. This can create a large advantage when calculating debt ratios and is only possible with conventional financing. Here’s more self employed mortgage options.

Why Conventional Works for Florida Buyers

PMI cancels at 80% LTV – no lifetime mortgage insurance like FHA. Save hundreds per month once you hit 20% equity.

3% down for first-time buyers via HomeReady or Home Possible – even less than FHA’s 3.5% minimum.

2026 conforming limits are $832,750 baseline in most FL counties – well above FHA’s $541,287 – so more home in your price range.

Second homes and investment properties qualify – FHA and VA are primary-residence only. Conventional opens up rental and vacation purchases.

Gift funds allowed for the entire down payment on primary residences – family or close relatives can fully fund your closing.

Cash-out refinance up to 80% LTV – access home equity for renovations, debt consolidation, or other major expenses.

Non-occupant co-borrowers allowed on Fannie Mae loans – parents or family can co-sign without living in the home.

Manufactured homes on permanent foundations qualify for conventional financing as primary, second, or investment properties.

Multiple PMI structures available – monthly, single-premium, split-premium, or lender-paid. We pick the cheapest option for your scenario.

10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 year fixed terms plus adjustable rate options – structure your payment to match your timeline.

Florida Conventional Mortgage FAQ

Yes there are two main ways. You can use a piggyback mortgage where you take a first mortgage at 80% loan to value, a second mortgage for 10%, and then put 10% down. The other option is lender paid PMI which gets built into a slightly higher interest rate, so you don’t have a separate monthly PMI payment. We can model both options for you to see which costs less based on how long you plan to keep the home.

It depends on your credit score. With a 720 credit score or higher conventional 3% down is usually a better deal because the PMI is removable after you have 20% equity, while FHA mortgage insurance stays for the life of the loan on most files. Below 700 FHA can actually save you money in the early years. We run both options for every first time buyer so you can see the actual monthly difference before deciding.

Yes, but with some restrictions. The home needs to be on a permanent foundation, double-wide or larger, titled as real property, and on land you own. Single-wide manufactured homes generally don’t qualify for conventional financing and need FHA, VA, or USDA instead. See our manufactured home financing page for the full list of requirements.

Up to 9% of the sales price if you put 25% down or more. Up to 6% if you put 10% to 25% down. Up to 3% if you put less than 10% down. For investment properties it’s capped at 2% regardless of down payment. Seller concessions can also cover a temporary rate buydown which gets you a lower payment for the first 1 to 3 years of the loan.

4 years from a chapter 7 bankruptcy discharge. 2 years from a chapter 13 discharge. 4 years from a short sale. 7 years from a foreclosure. These are the standard waiting periods but there are some exceptions when extenuating circumstances can be documented (medical event, job loss, divorce). If your event was less than 4 years ago FHA might also be a path since FHA seasoning is 3 years.

Almost always VA. The $0 down, no monthly mortgage insurance, and lower rates are too good to pass up. The only common reason to choose conventional over VA is to preserve your VA entitlement for a future purchase, or to avoid the VA funding fee on a small loan. Otherwise use the benefit. More on Florida VA loans.

About the Author

Keith Meredith

Division President, Black Rock Mortgage
NMLS 303217 · 16+ years originating · $100M+ in mortgages closed

Keith Meredith is a 16 year mortgage industry expert who has originated over $100,000,000 in mortgages. Headquartered in Ocala, Florida, Keith runs Black Rock Mortgage as a division of Coast 2 Coast Mortgage, a lender licensed in 40 states. Keith specializes in manufactured home financing, self-employed mortgages, VA construction loans, and helping first-time buyers navigate FHA, USDA, and conventional programs. He creates written and video content to help borrowers understand their financing options.

Call or text directly: 352-619-4959 · Follow Keith on X, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn

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