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Service PMI Removal · HPA · Conventional Loans

Independent PMI removal appraisals — Utah

USPAP-compliant real estate appraisals to support cancellation of private mortgage insurance on conventional loans. Independent, non-AMC. Signed by a Utah Certified Residential Appraiser (Lic. 10948175-CR00). For Utah homeowners whose loan-to-value has dropped below 80% through appreciation, improvements, or principal paydown.

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Dan Miner · Certified Residential Appraiser · Utah Lic. 10948175‑CR00

What is a PMI removal appraisal?

A PMI removal appraisal is a USPAP-compliant real estate appraisal commissioned by a Utah homeowner to support a request to cancel private mortgage insurance (PMI) on a conventional loan. Under the federal Homeowners Protection Act of 1998 (12 U.S.C. § 4901 et seq.), borrowers have the right to request PMI cancellation once the loan principal balance reaches 80% of the original property value, with automatic termination at 78%. The HPA also allows borrowers to request early cancellation based on current property value when the home has appreciated, improvements have raised value, or a combination of both has pushed the loan-to-value below the servicer's threshold (typically 75–80%).

When you request cancellation based on current value, the loan servicer needs evidence of that current value — and a signed USPAP appraisal by a state-certified appraiser is the standard evidence servicers accept. Our reports are written to that standard with the intended use (PMI cancellation request) disclosed on the cover page.

When do you need one?

  • Your home has appreciated since purchase. Utah's market has run hot enough over the past several years that many homes are well above their purchase price — pushing loan-to-value below the cancellation threshold even without principal paydown.
  • You've completed major improvements. Kitchen, bathroom, or whole-home renovations that materially increase market value can shift LTV below 80% sooner than principal paydown alone would.
  • You've combined appreciation, improvements, and paydown. Most successful PMI removal cases use all three at once.
  • You're paying $2,000–$6,000+ per year in PMI. If you have a meaningful PMI payment and any reason to think your LTV is approaching 80%, the appraisal cost is a small fraction of one year of PMI savings.
  • You meet the servicer's seasoning requirement. Most servicers require at least 2 years of payment history before an appreciation-based cancellation; 5 years if the cancellation case rests entirely on market appreciation rather than improvements. Confirm with your servicer first.

Important: check with your servicer first

Loan servicers vary widely on how they handle PMI removal appraisals. Before engaging an appraiser, contact your servicer's PMI cancellation department and confirm:

  • Whether they accept a borrower-ordered appraisal (some require AMC routing through their panel — in that case we can't help directly, though the underlying appraisal work would be similar).
  • The exact loan-to-value threshold required (some servicers use 80%, some 75%, depending on loan-to-Fannie/Freddie guidelines and seasoning).
  • Any specific form requirements (Form 1004 is standard, but a few servicers have proprietary forms).
  • The seasoning requirement (typically 2 years for improvement-based cancellation, 5 years for pure market-appreciation cancellation).
  • Where to send the completed report.

Most servicers will provide a one-page PMI cancellation packet on request that answers all of these questions. Get that packet first, then engage the appraiser — it saves time and prevents engagement-scope mismatches.

Our process

  1. Pre-engagement check. Confirm with your servicer that they accept a borrower-ordered appraisal from a state-certified appraiser, and what specific form and LTV threshold apply. Send us the servicer's cancellation packet (or the relevant requirements) with your quote request.
  2. Engagement. Engagement letter names you as the engaging party, the servicer as the intended user, and "PMI cancellation request" as the intended use. We confirm scope and quote a fee in writing — usually within one business day.
  3. Inspection. Interior and exterior of the property in its current condition, with photographs and measurement, documenting any improvements that support the value opinion.
  4. Comparable research. Three to five closed comparable sales from the period leading up to the effective date, weighted for proximity, similarity, and condition. Adjustments conservative and explicitly documented.
  5. Report and delivery. A 25–35 page narrative report on the form your servicer specifies (typically Form 1004), signed by the appraiser, transmitted as a PDF to you and to the servicer's PMI cancellation address. Typical turnaround: 5–7 business days from inspection access.

Fees and turnaround

PMI removal appraisal fees price near our standard residential baseline for typical single-family homes. Custom homes or large acreage price higher. The appraisal cost is almost always a fraction of one year's PMI premium, so the payback math is usually obvious — but we'll tell you up front if there is any reason to think the math doesn't support engagement (for example, if you mention a value you're hoping for and our quick market scan suggests it isn't achievable). Submit a quote request with the property address and the LTV target for a firm number within one business day.

Turnaround is 5–7 business days from inspection access. Most servicers process the PMI removal request itself within 30–60 days of receiving the appraisal, so the appraisal is rarely the bottleneck in the overall timeline.

Why hire an independent (non-AMC) appraiser when your servicer allows it

When the servicer allows borrower-ordered appraisals, you have a real choice between direct engagement (you choose the appraiser and pay the appraiser directly) and AMC routing (the servicer's panel selects an appraiser by rotation and you pay the AMC, which fee-splits with the appraiser). Direct engagement typically costs 30–60% less than the AMC-routed equivalent because there is no middleman markup, and you can talk to the appraiser before, during, and after the report — which AMC orders do not allow.

Miner Appraisals is owner-operated and does not accept AMC orders. The appraiser who answers the inquiry is the appraiser who inspects the property and signs the report. The license number on the cover page is verifiable directly at secure.utah.gov/llv/search. See our full credentials and license verification page.

Frequently asked

Private mortgage insurance (PMI) is required on most conventional loans where the borrower puts down less than 20%. The Homeowners Protection Act (12 U.S.C. § 4901 et seq.) gives borrowers the right to request cancellation once the loan principal balance reaches 80% of the original property value, and requires automatic termination at 78%. Borrowers can also request early cancellation based on current property value if the home has appreciated or improvements have raised value — this is where a new appraisal comes in.
To request PMI cancellation based on current property value (rather than the original purchase price), the loan servicer needs evidence that current value is high enough to bring the loan-to-value ratio below the cancellation threshold (typically 80%, sometimes 75% depending on the servicer and the loan seasoning). A USPAP‑compliant appraisal by a state‑certified appraiser is the standard evidence servicers accept.
It depends on the servicer. Some servicers require the appraisal be ordered through their approved AMC panel — in that case you have no direct choice. Other servicers allow the homeowner to engage an independent appraiser directly, as long as the appraiser meets their criteria (state‑certified, USPAP‑compliant, signed report). Always confirm with your servicer's PMI cancellation department before engaging.
PMI typically costs 0.5–1.5% of the loan balance annually, paid as part of the monthly mortgage payment. On a $400,000 loan, that is roughly $2,000–$6,000 per year. A PMI removal appraisal usually pays for itself in the first one to two months of canceled PMI — and then continues paying back every month for the remaining life of the loan. The math is rarely close: if your loan‑to‑value is genuinely below 80%, an appraisal is almost always worth the cost.
Under HPA, borrowers can request cancellation at 80% loan‑to‑value based on original value. For cancellation based on current value (the appreciation scenario), most servicers require 75–80% LTV based on the new appraised value. The exact threshold depends on the servicer, the loan‑to‑Fannie/Freddie guidelines, and the seasoning of the loan (typically you need at least 2 years of payment history, or 5 years if the appreciation case rests entirely on market appreciation rather than improvements). Confirm the specific threshold with your servicer before ordering.
Standard turnaround is 5–7 business days from inspection access. The inspection is one to two hours on site. Most servicers process PMI removal requests within 30–60 days of receiving the appraisal; the appraisal is usually not the bottleneck in the timeline.
When the servicer allows borrower‑ordered appraisals, direct engagement with a state‑certified appraiser means a clean fee structure (no AMC fee split), direct communication, and an appraiser who can answer your questions about methodology before and after the report. AMC‑routed orders work too — but you pay more (the fee split adds 30–60% to the cost) and you don't choose the appraiser.

Related reading

If you are selling rather than refinancing, see our pre-listing, pre-purchase & FSBO appraisals service page. If you only need a square-footage measurement (for example, to challenge an MLS GLA discrepancy), see our house measurement service page. For property tax appeals — another homeowner-engaged use case where appreciation hurts rather than helps — see our tax appeal appraisal service page.

Coverage

PMI removal engagements regularly across Salt Lake County, Utah County, Davis County, Summit County, Wasatch County, Tooele County, Morgan County, and Weber County. We don't accept the underlying lender refinance order itself (that's AMC channel work we don't do), but the borrower-ordered cancellation appraisal is direct engagement.

Request a quote

Cancel your PMI? Get a quote for the appreciation-based appraisal.

Your loan servicer requires an independent appraisal — we send the report directly to them. Same-day fee quote, typically.