Fannie Mae Conforming Loan Limit Calculator
Buying a home with a mortgage usually means the loan will be sold on to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, two companies that buy mortgages from lenders. Whether a loan can be sold to them depends in part on its size. The conforming loan limit is the maximum loan amount they will buy, and this page checks a one-unit loan amount against the 2026 limits.
The limits are set each year by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). For 2026, the one-unit baseline limit is $832,750 in most of the United States, up $26,250 from $806,500 in 2025. That rise of 3.26 percent matches the change in the FHFA House Price Index between the third quarter of 2024 and the third quarter of 2025. In high-cost areas the ceiling is $1,249,125, and in Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands the baseline is $1,249,125 with a ceiling of $1,873,675. The 2026 limits were announced on November 25, 2025, and the limits rose in all but 32 counties or county equivalents.
Quick Answer
For a one-unit home in 2026, the baseline conforming loan limit is $832,750. In a high-cost area the limit can rise as high as $1,249,125, and in Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands the baseline is $1,249,125 with a ceiling of $1,873,675. Enter a loan amount and an area type in the checker above: it will tell you whether the loan sits within the baseline, within the ceiling (in which case your exact county limit decides), or above the limits altogether. County limits in high-cost areas fall between the baseline and the ceiling, so a loan near the top of the range needs its county figure confirmed with the FHFA county list.
- 2026 one-unit baseline: $832,750 in most of the United States; high-cost ceiling $1,249,125.
- Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands: baseline $1,249,125, ceiling $1,873,675.
- Within the baseline, a loan counts as conforming in any area; above the baseline, the county limit decides.
- Above even the ceiling, a loan does not count as conforming under the 2026 limits.
What a Conforming Loan Limit Is
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac buy mortgages from lenders, which frees lender money for new loans. A mortgage that meets their purchase rules is called a conforming loan. The loan amount is one of those rules: at or below the applicable limit, the loan can be sold to either company. Above the limit, it cannot, and it is handled under different lender rules instead.
How the baseline and ceiling work
The FHFA sets the limits each year. The baseline applies everywhere. The ceiling is 150 percent of the baseline, and it applies in high-cost areas, defined as areas where 115 percent of the local median home value exceeds the baseline. That is why two borrowers with the same loan amount can get different answers in different counties: the county limit, not the national headline figure, is the number that decides a loan near the top of the range.
Loan amount, not home price
The limit is about the loan amount, not the home price. A buyer who puts down a larger deposit borrows less, so the loan amount is the figure to check. For a sense of what a loan costs each month at a given amount, the Mortgage Payment Calculator works out the monthly payment from the loan amount, rate, and term.
The 2026 Limits in Full
| Area type | Baseline limit | Ceiling |
|---|---|---|
| Standard area (most of the United States) | $832,750 | The baseline is the limit |
| High-cost area (continental United States) | $832,750 | $1,249,125 |
| Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands | $1,249,125 | $1,873,675 |
How the 2026 limits changed
Compared with 2025, the baseline rose by $26,250, from $806,500 to $832,750. The FHFA release notes that limits rose in all but 32 counties or county equivalents, so most counties saw a higher limit in 2026 than in 2025.
Why the county limit matters
One point the table hides: in a high-cost area, the county limit is not automatically the ceiling. It falls somewhere between the baseline and the ceiling, set from local home values. The checker therefore uses the ceiling as the maximum and tells you when a county check is needed, rather than pretending every high-cost county allows the full ceiling.
How to Read Your Checker Result
The checker gives one of three verdicts.
The three verdicts
Within the baseline limit: the loan is at or below the baseline for the area type. It counts as conforming in any area, and no county check is needed for the amount itself.
Within the ceiling: check your county. The loan is above the baseline but at or below the ceiling. It counts as conforming only if the county limit covers it. Open the FHFA county list, find the county, and compare its figure with the loan amount before relying on the result.
Above the conforming limits: the loan is above even the ceiling for the area type. Under the 2026 limits it does not count as conforming, whatever the county.
What the check does not cover
The limit check answers only the amount question. It says nothing about credit, income, or deposit, which lenders assess separately. The Prequalify for Mortgage Calculator looks at the wider affordability picture, including income and debts, if you want the next step after the limit check.
What Happens If Your Loan Is Above the Limit
A loan above the conforming limits is commonly called a jumbo loan. Lenders keep such loans on their own books or sell them through other channels, and they may apply different requirements, such as stronger documentation or larger reserves. Pricing can also differ from conforming loans, though no single rate gap applies everywhere.
Your options if you are above the limit
If the checker puts a loan above the limits, the practical options are to increase the deposit so the loan amount falls, or to confirm whether the property county is a high-cost county with a higher limit. Either route changes the loan amount or the applicable limit, which is what the checker measures. The Mortgage Loan Affordability Calculator can help test what loan amount fits a given budget before rechecking the limit.
One-Unit Properties Only: Multi-Unit Limits
This checker covers one-unit properties only, which is the most common purchase case. Limits for two-unit, three-unit, and four-unit properties are higher than the one-unit figures, and they vary by county as well.
Why multi-unit figures are not on this page
Those figures are deliberately left out of this page: the FHFA release text used for this article did not include them, and secondary sources disagree on the ceilings. For a multi-unit purchase, use the FHFA county list for the exact figure rather than any number quoted from an article.
When the Limits Change
FHFA announces new conforming loan limits each November, and they take effect the following January 1. The 2026 limits were announced on November 25, 2025.
What happens after a new announcement
After a new November announcement, the figures on this page should be the new year figures, and the checker should be updated to match.
Frequently Asked Questions
A mortgage that meets the purchase rules of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, including a loan amount at or below the applicable limit. Conforming loans can be sold to either company. Loans above the limit cannot, and are commonly called jumbo loans.
The baseline is $832,750 in most of the United States. In high-cost areas the ceiling is $1,249,125, and in Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands the baseline is $1,249,125 with a ceiling of $1,873,675.
Yes. The baseline applies everywhere. In high-cost areas the limit rises toward the ceiling of $1,249,125, and the exact county figure falls between the baseline and the ceiling. In Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands the baseline and ceiling are both higher.
It does not count as conforming under the 2026 limits. Lenders handle such loans under different rules, often with stricter documentation and reserve requirements. A larger deposit that brings the loan amount under the limit is one way to stay within conforming bounds.
Yes. The FHFA sets one set of conforming loan limits, and the same limits apply to mortgages either company acquires.
No. This checker covers one-unit properties only. Limits for two-unit, three-unit, and four-unit properties are higher. Use the FHFA county list for the exact multi-unit figure for a county.
Use the FHFA county list and map, linked in the References section. County limits in high-cost areas fall between the baseline and the ceiling, so the county figure is the one that decides a loan near the top of the range.
FHFA announces new limits each November, and they take effect the following January 1. The 2026 limits were announced on November 25, 2025.
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References
- Federal Housing Finance Agency. "FHFA Announces Conforming Loan Limit Values for 2026." FHFA Announces Conforming Loan Limit Values for 2026 (Accessed October 29, 2026).
- Federal Housing Finance Agency. "Conforming loan limits: county list and map." FHFA Conforming Loan Limits County List and Map (Accessed October 29, 2026).
- Federal Housing Finance Agency. "House Price Index (HPI) Quarterly Report, 2025Q3 & September 2025." FHFA House Price Index report for the third quarter of 2025 (Accessed October 29, 2026).
- Fannie Mae. "Lender Letter LL-2024-03: Confirmation of Conforming Loan Limit Values for 2025." Fannie Mae Lender Letter LL-2024-03: Confirmation of Conforming Loan Limit Values for 2025 (Accessed October 29, 2026).
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "Conventional loans." Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: Conventional loans (Accessed October 29, 2026).
- HSH Associates. "Conforming Loan Limits for 2026." HSH Associates: Conforming Loan Limits for 2026 (Accessed October 29, 2026).
- Freddie Mac Conforming and Super Conforming Loan Limits Matrix, January 2026 (via PHL Correspondent). Freddie Mac Conforming and Super Conforming Loan Limits Matrix, January 2026 (Accessed October 29, 2026).
- ABA Banking Journal. "FHFA Increases 2026 Conforming Loan Limit Values." ABA Banking Journal: FHFA Increases 2026 Conforming Loan Limit Values (Accessed October 29, 2026).
- Rate. "Conforming Loan Limits Have Increased for 2026." Rate: Conforming Loan Limits Have Increased for 2026 (Accessed October 29, 2026).
- Dodd Frank Update. "FHFA Announces 2026 Conforming Loan Limit Values." Dodd Frank Update: FHFA Announces 2026 Conforming Loan Limit Values (Accessed October 29, 2026).