Loan Limits Rising for Conventional Financing for Barnstable, Dukes, and Nantucket Counties in 2020

Conforming loan limits are on the rise for Barnstable, Dukes, and Nantucket counties in 2020. This means home buyers in all three counties will have higher limits for both Federal Housing Finance Agency (Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac) loans and Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans. This gives prospective home buyers more purchasing power in these loan products.

For FHA, the single-family loan limits in counties in Barnstable, Dukes, and Nantucket counties rose. In Barnstable, the FHA loan limit will be $471,500, while in Dukes and Nantucket counties, the new limit is $765,600. This means that with 3.5% down, a new purchasing amount will be nearly $491,521 on Cape Cod and on Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket the purchasing power with a 3.5% loan is $792,396.

For Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (FHFA) loans, the single-family lending limit will rise from $484,350 to $510,400 for Barnstable County. On Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, the new limit will be $765,600 - up from $679,650. This means that depending with down payment, the purchasing power of a conventional loan hovers around at least $525,000 (depending on down payment requirements) when you add a three to five percent down payment on top of the maximum loan limit for Cape Cod and approaches $800,000 on each island depending on down payment.

These increased loan limits help to increase the buying power and options for eligible buyers and properties in a given area. This means that buyers will be able to afford a wider range of properties without taking out a jumbo loan. The new rates for each county in CCIAOR’s jurisdiction are:

FHA:

Barnstable County:
2020: $471,500

Dukes County:
2020: $765,600

Nantucket County:
2019: $765,600

FHFA (Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac):

Barnstable County:
2020: $510,400

Dukes County:
2020: $765,600

Nantucket County:
2020: $765,600

What does a “high-cost area” like Dukes and Nantucket counties mean?

In areas where 115 percent of the local median home value exceeds the baseline loan limit, the maximum area loan limit will be higher. HERA sets the maximum loan limit as a function of the area median home value, while setting a “ceiling” on that limit of 150 percent of the baseline loan limit.