FHA MIP Refund

FHA is in some financial trouble and as a result they made some changes to their rules lately. They now require that new FHA borrowers, as of April 1 2013, continue to pay mortgage insurance premiums for the life of the loan. An old FHA rule, dating from 2001, had allowed borrowers to cancel their mortgage insurance when their outstanding balance reached 78% of the original principal balance.

There was an important change April 1, 2013

However, as of April 1, 2013 you will pay the FHA mortgage insurance for the life of the loan. However, if you had an FHA-insured mortgage prior to the April 1st 2013 date that you paid off, refinanced out of, or got rid of  by selling the house, you may be eligible for a refund from FHA. As time goes by, the refund amount you are due drops drastically. That is because the mortgage insurance cost is front-loaded in the early years. It may be worth reaching out to FHA and checking to see if you are owed some money.

Contact FHA to see if you are owed money

Call the Mortgage Insurance Premium Refund Support Service Center at (800) 697-6967 or email them at sf_premiums@hud.gov. If you call, plan on sitting on hold for a while. So order a pizza, get some reading material, make the call…and wait.

When you call you’ll need your property address, your name and preferably your FHA case number, which will likely be on some of the original loan paperwork.

You do not need to pay another person or firm to assist you in collecting your refund. Don’t pay a third party a fee, that is a waste of money. For more on this click here to go to FHA’s website.