The power of private mortgage insurance
PMI helps borrowers achieve the American dream of homeownership sooner, while protecting taxpayers, lending institutions and the government from risk.
Private mortgage insurance (PMI) plays a critical role in our nation’s residential mortgage finance system and helps borrowers overcome the biggest obstacle to homeownership: the down payment.
PMI is a powerful financial tool that allows families to achieve the dream of homeownership sooner by making low-down-payment mortgages a reality, while also protecting the government, taxpayers and lenders from credit losses.
PMI benefits individual consumers and companies in communities across the country
Homebuyers
Allows them to buy a home sooner and start building equity, as well as increases their home and neighborhood options.
Mortgage lenders
Reduces their credit losses by insuring a portion of the mortgage loan in the event of default.
Taxpayers
Protects them from undue mortgage risk on government-backed loans.
Investors
Enhances the quality of the mortgage, making it a safer investment for investors looking to secure purchases.
PMI by the numbers
These statistics from the 2026 USMI State Report show the powerful impact of PMI.
- The average household earning the national median income of $83,730 could need 25 years to save a 20% down payment – plus closing costs – to buy a median-priced single-family home ($419,300) in 2025
- With PMI, homebuyers can put down as little as 3% of the purchase price to buy a home
- 800,000+ borrowers used PMI to purchase or refinance a home in 2025
- Nearly 65% of purchase loans with PMI went to first-time homebuyers
- Nearly 41 million homeowners have used PMI to purchase or refinance a mortgage since 1957
MGIC in the industry
MGIC is the original and longest-standing modern private mortgage insurance (PMI) provider in the United States, with a reputation built on decades of reliability, expertise and thoughtful risk management. The modern form of PMI was pioneered in 1957 by Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation (MGIC), a Wisconsin-based corporation (NYSE: MTG), to make the homebuying process more accessible for borrowers and less time-consuming for lenders.
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The MGIC difference
What MGIC does makes a difference. In addition to competitive rates and a drive to do what's right, we offer invaluable resources to help grow your business.