Jumbo mortgage loans provide Californians with a unified way to finance high-cost homes.
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JD MORTGAGE® connects you with lenders offering low to no down payment mortgages designed specifically for high-income professionals. We find the lenders that allow jumbo loan balances, relaxed debt-to-income ratios and typically do not require private mortgage insurance (PMI).
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California is a place of dreams for many. Whether you are pursuing a dream in television or film in Los Angeles, enjoying Orange County and San Diego beaches, hiking in Riverside, exploring new technological heights in the North in Santa Clara County, or living the agricultural life in the state’s center, California offers a great quality of life, a wonderful climate, and a beautiful landscape.
The cost of all that famous California beauty is getting high in many regions of the state, however. Whether you live in Alameda or the capital of Sacramento, home prices in California are on the rise. According to the California Association of Realtors, the median sales price of a home in California is $898,980. That number is over the conforming limit for conventional loans in many counties, making it hard for homebuyers to finance a home in the state with traditional home loans.
For the most recent year, the HDMA data places California first in the country in terms of mortgage origination activity, with a total of $239 billion in jumbo mortgages originated. Given the purchase prices in the California housing market, it’s no wonder that so many Californians are turning to jumbo home loans.
The jumbo loan limit in California for most counties is $726,200. For counties along the coast, including San Francisco and Los Angeles, the California conforming loan limit is $1,089,300. Any loan that exceeds either $726,200 or $1,089,300 is a jumbo loan, depending on the county.
| California County | California Jumbo loan (1-unit) | California Conforming loan limit (1-unit) | California FHA loan limit (1-unit) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alameda | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| Alpine | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $463,450 | ||||
| Amador | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Butte | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Calaveras | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Colusa | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Contra Costa | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| Del Norte | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| El Dorado | $763,600+ | $763,600 | $675,050 | ||||
| Fresno | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Glenn | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Humboldt | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Imperial | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Inyo | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $431,250 | ||||
| Kern | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Kings | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Lake | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Lassen | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Los Angeles | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| Madera | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Marin | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| Mariposa | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Mendocino | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $506,000 | ||||
| Merced | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Modoc | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Mono | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $563,500 | ||||
| Monterey | $915,400+ | $915,400 | $854,450 | ||||
| Napa | $1,017,750+ | $1,017,750 | $897,000 | ||||
| Nevada | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $609,500 | ||||
| Orange | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| Placer | $763,600+ | $763,600 | $675,050 | ||||
| Plumas | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Riverside | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $562,350 | ||||
| Sacramento | $763,600+ | $763,600 | $675,050 | ||||
| San Benito | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| San Bernardino | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $562,350 | ||||
| San Diego | $977,500+ | $977,500 | $879,750 | ||||
| San Francisco | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| San Joaquin | $726,2000+ | $726,200 | $563,500 | ||||
| San Luis Obispo | $911,950+ | $911,950 | $805,000 | ||||
| San Mateo | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| Santa Barbara | $805,000+ | $805,000 | $783,150 | ||||
| Santa Clara | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| Santa Cruz | $1,089,300+ | $1,089,300 | $970,800 | ||||
| Shasta | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Sierra | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Siskiyou | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Solano | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $614,100 | ||||
| Sonoma | $861,350+ | $861,350 | $765,750 | ||||
| Stanislaus | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $460,000 | ||||
| Sutter | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,900 | ||||
| Tehama | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Trinity | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Tulare | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Tuolumne | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,680 | ||||
| Ventura | $948,750+ | $948,750 | $851,000 | ||||
| Yolo | $763,600+ | $763,600 | $675,050 | ||||
| Yuba | $726,200+ | $726,200 | $420,900 |
If you’re ready to learn more about the best jumbo mortgage lenders in California, here are the top options we’ve found through our research.
SoFi is a financial institution based in California that specializes in student loan refinance options, PLUS loans and flexible repayment terms. You might not know that they also offer jumbo loan mortgages.
We spoke to a loan officer at SoFi to discuss their jumbo loan rates and this is what we learned:
When you’re ready to connect with a loan officer experienced in jumbo mortgages, use our form to quickly match with jumbo loan programs based on your specific circumstances.
Keybank has over $170 billion in assets and is the 24th largest bank in the United States. They operate throughout 39 states but can originate mortgages in nearly all 50, making them a popular choice among borrowers throughout the country. One of their key financial products is a jumbo mortgage loan.
We contacted Keybank to learn more about their jumbo loan mortgage rates and here are the key terms and highlights:
When you’re ready to connect with a loan officer experienced in jumbo mortgages, use our form to quickly match with jumbo loan programs based on your specific circumstances.
Flagstar Bank has a jumbo product in all 50 states, making it a popular choice among many people looking for higher mortgage amounts. If you’re considering a jumbo mortgage, you’ll want to compare Flagstar’s rates as part of your analysis.
We reached out to a loan officer at Flagstar Bank to get details on their jumbo loan process. Here are the highlights:
When you’re ready to connect with a loan officer experienced in jumbo mortgages, use our form to quickly match with jumbo loan programs based on your specific circumstances.
What are the pros and cons of taking out a California jumbo loan? The main advantage is that you will be able to finance a home purchase with a single loan and a low down payment. Conventional loans are not keeping pace with California home prices, meaning that your only option with traditional financing will be to patch together more than one mortgage.
That does come with a few downsides, however. First, you need great credit to qualify for a jumbo loan. You also are looking at paying a higher interest rate, most likely. Conforming loan limits are set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two federal mortgage companies that buy most of the mortgages made in the U.S. from lenders and resell them to investors.
Of course, the truth is that home prices in California have gone far beyond conventional limits in many counties. That means that for many Californians a jumbo loan is the easiest and most unified way to finance a home purchase. When the alternative is having enough cash to offset conforming limits, the higher interest rate of a jumbo loan can become a more appealing option.
A jumbo loan in California is a great option for borrowers with strong credit who live in high-price regions of the state. An Angeleno or a San Franciscan by definition is looking at real estate prices well above conventional limits. If you live in one of these regions or a similar region, have great credit and want the ease of a single loan to finance a home, a jumbo loan is a perfect choice for you.
When is a jumbo loan not the right fit? If you have enough cash to put down on a conventional mortgage that will offset the limits and allow you to finance a home at a lower interest rate, then you might want to go with a conventional loan. That being said, with California prices the way they are, you are looking at a significant amount of cash to make that happen.
If you want to find the best jumbo loans in other states, click on your state below.
Joshua Holt is a licensed mortgage loan originator (NMLS #2306824) and founder of Biglaw Investor. His mortgage expertise lies in the areas of professional mortgage loans, particularly for lawyers, doctors and other high-income professionals. Prior to Biglaw Investor, Josh practiced private equity mergers & acquisition law for one of the largest law firms in the country.
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