Independent decision platform
Conventional mortgages, explained well enough to decide.
Official 2026 loan limits, deterministic calculators, neutral comparisons, and first-party research — built so you can see the trade-offs before anyone asks you for a document.
Conventional.Loans is operated by Bolt Home Loans LLC, NMLS 2784913. Educational content only — not an application, approval, preapproval, rate quote, or commitment to lend.
Choose your path
Why this source
- $832,750
- 2026 baseline one-unit conforming limit (FHFA)
- 3,235
- Official county limit records published in full
- 56
- States, DC, and territories covered
- 100%
- Substantive claims tied to a visible primary source
Source: Federal Housing Finance Agency, Full County Loan Limit List 2026 (HERA-Based Final Flat). Operated by Bolt Home Loans LLC, NMLS 2784913 — not a government agency and not affiliated with FHFA, Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac.
The honest version
What actually changes the answer
A single monthly-payment number hides the decision. Six inputs move a conventional loan more than anything else, and they trade against each other. Every tool on this site is built to make that trade visible instead of collapsing it into one figure.
Work through it in the Blueprint- 01
Down payment
3% and 20% can both be right. It changes PMI, payment, cash to close, and flexibility.
- 02
Credit profile
Pricing and mortgage-insurance considerations move across credit tiers.
- 03
Occupancy
Primary residence, second home, and investment carry different expectations.
- 04
Loan size
Conforming, high-balance, and jumbo behave differently in the same county.
- 05
Mortgage insurance
May apply above 80% LTV. How and when it ends varies by structure.
- 06
Time horizon
How long you keep the loan can outweigh the headline monthly payment.
Featured calculator
Mini payment estimator
A quick look at principal & interest
Enter your own numbers — nothing leaves your browser. This excludes property taxes, homeowners insurance, HOA, and PMI. The rate is the one you typed; it is not a quote.
Educational estimate using the rate you entered. Not a rate quote or an offer of credit.
Open the full calculatorComparison center
Neutral side-by-side, no house favorite
Original research and open data
First-party analysis anyone can cite
We publish the full official county limit list, the 2025→2026 change analysis, and downloadable CSV and JSON distributions — free to use, with the source file and retrieval date shown.
Conventional Loan Center
Guides that answer the whole question
How we source and review
Primary sources. Transparent assumptions.
Every substantive claim links to a primary source such as FHFA, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, CFPB, HUD/FHA, VA, or NMLS Consumer Access. Every calculator shows its formula, its assumptions, and when it was last reviewed. We do not publish rates, and we do not run analytics, session replay, or advertising pixels.
Plan the loan, not just the payment.
Build a browser-only Blueprint of your situation, then continue with a licensed loan officer when you are ready. Nothing here is an application, approval, preapproval, rate quote, or commitment to lend.