Jumbo loans in Massachusetts: the 2026 Suffolk County limit and what it means in Back Bay

What is the jumbo loan limit in Massachusetts for 2026?

A jumbo loan is a mortgage larger than the conforming loan limit that the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) sets each year for loans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can buy. Limits are set county by county. Back Bay is in Suffolk County, where the 2026 limit for a one-unit home is $962,550.

One-unit limit in Suffolk County

Suffolk County is a high-cost area, so its limit sits above the baseline, but at $962,550 it is well below the $1,249,125 ceiling. Some lender sites imply the ceiling applies to Boston; FHFA's county list shows it does not. A loan of $962,551 or more on a Back Bay condo or townhouse is a jumbo loan.

Two- to four-unit limits

Higher limits apply to a building with two to four units, which matters if you buy a whole Back Bay rowhouse that is still divided into apartments and finance it as a multi-unit property. A condo unit inside a converted building is a one-unit loan, however many units the building has.

FHA loans in Suffolk County

FHA-insured loans have their own limits. LendingTree reports the 2026 FHA one-unit limit for Suffolk County as $962,550, the same figure as the conforming limit; confirm it on HUD's FHA limit lookup before relying on it. An FHA loan also requires the condo building to meet FHA's project rules.

Baseline and ceiling

FHFA set the 2026 baseline at $832,750, up $26,250 from 2025, after a 3.26% average house price increase between the third quarters of 2024 and 2025. The high-cost ceiling is 150% of the baseline. The limits were announced on November 25, 2025. The 2027 limits had not been announced as of October 7, 2026.

Limits in every Massachusetts county

FHFA's 2026 county file puts Massachusetts' 14 counties in three groups. The five counties of the Boston metro area share Suffolk's limit, Dukes and Nantucket reach the national ceiling, and the rest sit at the baseline.

A loan is jumbo when it is larger than the limit for the county where the home is, so the same $1,000,000 loan is jumbo in Suffolk County and conforming on Nantucket.

Why a typical Back Bay purchase needs a jumbo loan

Zillow's typical home values for ZIP 02116 in August 2026 were $1,298,982 for a condo and $1,818,983 for a single-family home. With 20% down, both loans exceed the Suffolk County limit.

The same holds at the neighborhood level. Zillow's typical value for all homes in the Back Bay neighborhood was $1,340,764 in August 2026; 80% of that is $1,072,611.20, or $110,061.20 over the limit. For ZIP 02116 as a whole ($1,355,771), the 80% loan is $1,084,616.80, $122,066.80 over. Zillow publishes no street or building values, so these ZIP and neighborhood figures are the closest public benchmark.

The break-even price is $1,203,187.50: above that, 20% down leaves a loan over $962,550. For comparison, Zillow's typical 02115 condo value of $894,042 gives an 80% loan of $715,233.60, inside the limit. ZIP 02199 is dominated by the Prudential Center area towers and does not describe brownstone homes. How values differ by unit type and street is covered on the Back Bay condos page.

Jumbo loan requirements in Massachusetts

Jumbo loans are not bought by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, so each lender sets its own rules. The ranges below are what Experian reports lenders commonly ask for; they are not requirements, and no lender is bound by them. Ask several lenders for their current terms in writing.

Credit score

Experian reports that some lenders want a FICO score of 720 or better for many jumbo loans and typically accept no score below 700.

Down payment

Experian reports jumbo lenders typically want at least 10% down, and some require as much as 30%. On the 02116 condo value, 10% is $129,898.20 (a loan of $1,169,083.80) and 30% is $389,694.60. At 30% down the loan is $909,287.40, which falls under the $962,550 limit and would no longer be jumbo.

Debt-to-income ratio

Experian reports jumbo lenders typically require a debt-to-income ratio no higher than 43%: your monthly debt payments, including the new housing payment, divided by gross monthly income.

Cash reserves

Lenders often want savings left after closing, as much as 12 months of loan payments by Experian's account. Twelve months of principal and interest on the 02116 condo example at 7.28% is $85,322.83, on top of the down payment and closing costs on a Massachusetts purchase.

Appraisal

Experian reports many jumbo lenders require two appraisals. Back Bay homes vary sharply by street, floor, light and outdoor space (see how Back Bay's streets differ), so appraisers rely on close comparable sales; an appraisal below the price means a larger down payment or a renegotiation.

Condo project review

Lenders look at the building as well as the buyer. For conforming loans, Fannie Mae's Selling Guide requires a project review for most condo loans, through a full review, its Project Eligibility Review Service, an FHA-approved project review or a waived review for certain project types. It also lists features that make a project ineligible, such as inadequate insurance, certain litigation involving the project, and provisions like rights of first refusal that interfere with a lender's remedies. A jumbo lender applies its own condo review, so ask early whether the building qualifies, and have the condo trust's budget, insurance certificate and minutes ready.

Monthly cost of a jumbo loan on a 02116 condo and house

These examples use the Freddie Mac 30-year fixed average of 7.28% for the week of October 1, 2026, standard monthly amortization over 360 payments, and Boston's FY2026 property tax with the residential exemption. Jumbo rates are quoted by each lender and can be higher or lower than this average.

Principal and interest use P&I = L x r / (1 - (1 + r)^-360), with r = 0.0728 / 12. The tax line is the FY2026 bill on Zillow's value divided by 12; your bill depends on your assessed value, explained in the Boston property tax guide for owners. Add the condo fee, insurance and any mortgage insurance yourself. Freddie Mac's 15-year average the same week was 6.60%, which on the condo loan gives principal and interest of $9,109.65 a month.

Condo fee

The monthly common charge for a unit in a converted brownstone covers the building's shared costs and its reserve contributions, and it varies widely by building. Lenders count it in your debt-to-income ratio. Ask the condo trust for the current fee and any planned special assessment before you apply.

Insurance and the CPA surcharge

NerdWallet's analysis puts the average Boston homeowners insurance cost at about $2,395 a year, or $199.58 a month, for its sample house policy; a condo unit policy (HO-6) is priced differently, so get quotes for the actual home. Boston's Community Preservation Act surcharge adds $105.14 a year on the 02116 condo example with the exemption.

Run your own numbers

The jumbo loan calculator with Boston tax takes your price, down payment, rate, term, condo fee and insurance, adds the FY2026 tax and flags whether the loan exceeds $962,550.

Preparing a jumbo application for a Back Bay home

A jumbo approval depends as much on the paperwork for the building and the cash you hold after closing as on income. Three things are worth lining up before you make an offer.

Cash needed at closing and after

On the 02116 condo example, a 20% down payment of $259,796.40 plus 12 months of principal and interest as reserves ($85,322.83) comes to $345,119.23, before the buyer's closing costs. Lenders count reserves differently, by account type and by months of payment, so ask each one how it measures them.

Condo documents and reserves

Massachusetts requires every condominium to keep an adequate replacement reserve fund under M.G.L. c. 183A, s. 10. A Massachusetts real estate attorney's buying guide suggests, as a rule of thumb, that the capital reserve hold at least 10% of the annual budget and more for older buildings, and notes that a poorly funded reserve raises the risk of a special assessment. Lenders reviewing a converted rowhouse building look at the same budget and insurance, and the seller's 6(d) certificate on unpaid condo charges is required to close.

Rate quotes and locks

The Freddie Mac average is a benchmark, not a quote. Ask each lender for a written Loan Estimate on the same day, for the same loan amount and term, and ask how long it will lock the rate, since a Back Bay closing that waits on condo documents or a second appraisal can take longer than a rate lock.

Do jumbo loans have PMI?

Sometimes. Private mortgage insurance protects the lender when the down payment is small, and on a jumbo loan each lender decides whether it offers loans below 20% down and whether it charges mortgage insurance on them. Experian reports jumbo lenders typically want at least 10% down, so ask every lender you compare whether its quote includes mortgage insurance and what it costs each month.

When mortgage insurance can end

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes the federal rules for single-family principal residences closed on or after July 29, 1999. You can ask in writing to cancel PMI when the balance is scheduled to reach 80% of the home's original value, if your payments are current, there is no second mortgage and the home has not lost value. The servicer generally must end it when the balance is scheduled to reach 78%, and in any case the month after the midpoint of the loan term, 15 years into a 30-year loan. Lender-paid mortgage insurance follows different rules, and lenders may apply more lenient standards of their own.

Example on a 02116 condo with 10% down

On Zillow's typical 02116 condo value of $1,298,982 (August 2026), 10% down leaves a loan of $1,169,083.80, or 90% of the value. A cancellation request becomes possible once the scheduled balance reaches $1,039,185.60 (80%), and automatic termination applies at $1,013,205.96 (78%). With 20% down the loan starts at 80%, which is why many lenders charge no mortgage insurance at that level; confirm it in the Loan Estimate.

Pros and cons of a jumbo loan

Pros

• One loan covers the whole amount above $962,550, with one rate, one closing and one monthly payment, instead of a conforming first loan plus a second loan.
• You can buy at Back Bay prices without the down payment it takes to stay conforming: $336,432 (25.9%) on the typical 02116 condo and $856,433 (47.1%) on the typical 02116 single-family home.
• Cash not used for a larger down payment can stay in savings, which also helps meet the lender's reserve requirement.

Cons

• Stricter approval: Experian reports common jumbo requirements of a credit score of 700 to 720 or more, a debt-to-income ratio of 43% or less and up to 12 months of payments in reserve.
• More paperwork for the building, since a condo has to pass the lender's own project review, and sometimes two appraisals.
• A larger balance means more interest: $1,520,499.18 over 30 years on the 02116 condo loan at 7.28%, against $1,408,368.72 on a loan of exactly $962,550 at the same rate.
• Terms vary more between lenders than on conforming loans, so comparing written quotes takes longer.

Family help with a jumbo down payment

Family money often closes the gap between a conforming and a jumbo loan, or meets a lender's reserve requirement. How it is structured matters to both the lender and the IRS.

Gifts and loans from family

Tell the lender whether the money is a gift or a loan. A gift is usually documented with a letter stating that no repayment is expected. A loan that you repay monthly is a debt like any other, and its payment counts in the debt-to-income ratio the lender calculates. Ask the lender early how it documents each kind.

The $100,000 rule for family loans

What is sometimes called the "$100,000 loophole" is a limit in the federal rules on below-market loans, 26 U.S.C. 7872. For a gift loan between individuals (a loan at no or low interest where the forgone interest is in the nature of a gift), the interest the IRS treats as paid is capped at the borrower's net investment income for the year while total loans between the two people do not exceed $100,000, and that income is treated as zero if it is $1,000 or less. The cap does not apply if avoiding federal tax is one of the main purposes of the interest arrangement, and loans of $10,000 or less are outside the rules entirely. These rules are tax law, not lending rules; confirm how they apply to your family with a CPA or tax attorney.

Jumbo loan vs a conforming loan plus a second loan

If the loan is only a little over the limit, there are two common alternatives to a single jumbo loan.

Conforming first loan plus a second loan

On the 02116 condo with 20% down, you could take a conforming first mortgage of $962,550 and a second loan of $76,635.60 for the rest. At 7.28%, the first loan's principal and interest would be $6,585.89 a month. The second loan is priced separately by its lender, often with a different rate type and term, so compare the combined monthly cost and the combined closing costs with a single jumbo quote.

A larger down payment

Putting $336,432 down on the same condo, 25.9% of the price, brings the loan to exactly $962,550. On the single-family value, staying conforming takes $856,433, or 47.1%, so at that value a single-family purchase with a conventional down payment means a jumbo loan.

What to compare

• The rate and fees on each option, from written Loan Estimates.
• Whether the second loan's rate is fixed or adjustable, and when it can change.
• Reserve and credit requirements, which differ between jumbo and conforming programs.
• Whether the building passes each lender's condo review.
• The total interest over the term: at 7.28%, the 30-year condo loan above pays $1,520,499.18 in interest if held to term, so a lower rate or a shorter term changes the lifetime cost far more than the monthly figure suggests.

This page explains how jumbo financing works; it is not lending advice and no approval is implied. Confirm current requirements with lenders, and tax questions with a Massachusetts CPA. If you own in Back Bay and are buying your next home, pricing your current Back Bay home comes first, and recent sales on your block are what set it.

Frequently asked questions