Official 2026 FHFA Conforming Loan Limits — By County and State
The official 2026 FHFA conforming loan limits are $832,750 for a one-unit home in most U.S. counties, an increase of $26,250 over 2025, and $1,249,125 in designated high-cost areas, effective for loans delivered to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac starting January 1, 2026. In our three licensed states, the high-cost limit is $1,209,750 across twelve North and Central New Jersey counties, $977,500 in Fairfield County, Connecticut, and $990,150 in Monroe County, Florida. Every other county in NJ, CT, and FL uses the $832,750 baseline. Here is the full county-by-county breakdown, what changed, and what it means for your loan amount.
2026 Baseline Limit
One-Unit Home
2026 High-Cost
Ceiling Limit
Increase Over
2025 Baseline
Home Price Rise
Driving the Hike
Your Answer Right Here
What Are the Official 2026 FHFA Conforming Loan Limits?
The Federal Housing Finance Agency sets the official 2026 FHFA conforming loan limits at $832,750 for a one-unit home in most of the country, and up to $1,249,125 in counties the agency designates as high-cost. FHFA announced these numbers on November 25, 2025, and they took effect for any conventional loan delivered to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac on or after January 1, 2026, even if the loan closed earlier. The increase reflects a 3.26 percent rise in the average U.S. home price between the third quarters of 2024 and 2025, the formula FHFA is legally required to follow under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act.
A conforming loan limit is simply the largest mortgage Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac will purchase from a lender. Stay at or under your county’s limit and you’re in conventional, agency-eligible territory, with the pricing and down payment flexibility that comes with it. Go a dollar over, and the loan becomes a jumbo mortgage, which most lenders underwrite with tougher credit, reserve, and down payment standards. Knowing your exact county number before you shop or lock a refinance is one of the simplest ways to avoid a financing surprise late in the process.
2026 Limits By Unit Count
2026 Conforming Loan Limits: Baseline vs. High-Cost
Every conforming loan limit scales up for two-, three-, and four-unit properties. Here is the full 2026 grid for the standard baseline and the high-cost ceiling, side by side.
| Property Size | 2026 Baseline Limit | 2026 High-Cost Ceiling |
|---|---|---|
| 1-Unit (Single Family) | $832,750 | $1,249,125 |
| 2-Unit (Duplex) | $1,066,250 | $1,599,375 |
| 3-Unit (Triplex) | $1,288,800 | $1,933,200 |
| 4-Unit (Fourplex) | $1,601,750 | $2,402,625 |
| Alaska, Hawaii, Guam & U.S. Virgin Islands (1-Unit) | $1,249,125 | $1,873,675 |
Source: FHFA Conforming Loan Limit Values for 2026, announced November 25, 2025. High-cost ceiling applies only in counties where 115% of the local median home value exceeds the baseline.
Why This Matters
Why the 2026 Conforming Loan Limits Went Up
FHFA doesn’t set the conforming loan limit by guesswork. HERA locks the agency into a formula: every fall, FHFA measures how much the average U.S. home price moved over the prior four quarters using its own House Price Index, then applies that same percentage to the following year’s baseline limit. Home prices rose 3.26 percent between the third quarter of 2024 and the third quarter of 2025, so the 2026 baseline rose by the identical 3.26 percent, from $806,500 to $832,750. According to FHFA’s official announcement, the new limits apply to loans delivered to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac beginning January 1, 2026, regardless of when the loan was originated, so a loan closed in December 2025 but sold to an Enterprise in January 2026 already qualifies under the higher number.
The High-Cost Ceiling and the Hold-Harmless Rule
High-cost counties don’t automatically get the full national ceiling. HERA raises a county’s limit only when 115 percent of the local median home value exceeds the baseline, and even then caps the increase at 150 percent of the baseline, which produces the $1,249,125 national ceiling for 2026. Some high-cost counties, including the twelve in North and Central New Jersey, saw home values rise in 2025 but not enough to reach the new ceiling, so FHFA’s hold-harmless provision kept their limit unchanged at $1,209,750 rather than lowering it. That created an unusual gap this year: FHA’s 2026 ceiling of $1,249,125 now sits $39,375 above the conforming limit in those same New Jersey counties, meaning an FHA-eligible buyer in Bergen or Hudson County can technically finance more than a conventional conforming buyer at the same address. It’s a quirk of two federal agencies applying different math to the same home-price data, worth knowing if you’re comparing FHA against conventional financing there. For general background on how loan program choice affects your payment, the CFPB’s rate-shopping guidance is a good independent starting point.
State-By-State
2026 Conforming Loan Limits in New Jersey, Connecticut & Florida
Mortgage-World.com is licensed in New Jersey, Connecticut, and Florida, so here’s exactly how the 2026 limits break down in the three states we serve every day.
New Jersey: Twelve High-Cost Counties
Twelve New Jersey counties sit inside the New York-Newark-Jersey City metro area’s high-cost designation for 2026: Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, and Union. A one-unit home in any of those counties has a 2026 conforming limit of $1,209,750. Every other New Jersey county, including Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, and Mercer, uses the $832,750 national baseline.
Connecticut: Fairfield County Sits Above the Baseline
Fairfield County, home to Greenwich, Stamford, Darien, and Westport, is Connecticut’s only high-cost county for 2026, with a one-unit conforming limit of $977,500. Every other Connecticut planning region, including Hartford and New Haven, stays at the $832,750 baseline.
Florida: Monroe County Is the Exception
Monroe County, covering the Florida Keys, is the only Florida county with a 2026 high-cost designation, carrying a one-unit conforming limit of $990,150. Every other Florida county, including Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, and Orange, uses the $832,750 baseline. Above these numbers, jumbo or Non-QM financing is the next step, and both remain available through Mortgage-World.com statewide.
Full Picture
What the 2026 Increase Means For You
A higher conforming loan limit changes more than a number on a chart. Here’s what actually shifts for buyers and homeowners in 2026.
- More purchase price fits under conventional financing before jumbo underwriting kicks in
- Down payments as low as 3-5% remain available up to the new limit
- High-cost county buyers should confirm their exact county figure before making an offer
- A loan that was jumbo-sized in 2025 may now fall inside the 2026 conforming limit
- Moving from jumbo to conforming can lower your rate and simplify underwriting
- Cash-out refinance proceeds can stretch further under the higher county limit
- HERA requires an annual adjustment tied to the FHFA House Price Index
- High-cost counties adjust based on 115% of local median home value, capped at 150% of baseline
- A hold-harmless rule prevents high-cost limits from dropping year over year
- A loan above your county limit is classified as a jumbo mortgage
- A conforming high balance loan may still apply in designated high-cost counties
- Non-QM and bank statement programs remain an option for jumbo-sized, self-employed files
How To Use This
Three Steps to Confirm Your 2026 Loan Limit
Match your property’s county against the tables above, or tell us the address and we’ll confirm the exact 2026 figure that applies.
If your target loan amount sits under the limit, you’re in conforming territory. Above it, we’ll walk you through conforming high balance, jumbo, or Non-QM alternatives.
We shop your file against the program that fits the 2026 limit for your county, so you get agency pricing whenever it’s available to you.
Most callers already know their target purchase price or current loan balance, so confirming eligibility under the 2026 limit for their county is usually a five-minute conversation. If a lender told you last year your loan was jumbo-only, it’s worth checking again now that the baseline and several high-cost ceilings have moved.
Related Resources
Related Mortgage Pages
Conforming limits decide when you cross into jumbo territory. These pages cover both.
What Clients Say
Real Reviews From Our Clients
Here’s what a few of our clients said about working with Mortgage-World.com.
Read more from our clients: Read More Reviews →
Common Questions Answered
Common Questions About the 2026 FHFA Conforming Loan Limits
