For the first time ever, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be allowed to purchase mortgage loans in excess of $1 million.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency sets conforming loan limits each November, based on the change in home values throughout the year.
For 2023, the conforming loan limit for most of the country will be $726,200 — an increase of $79,000 over the 2022 conforming loan limit.
That conforming mortgage loan limit for the two government enterprises will be the cap for the vast majority of counties, but conforming loan limits are also adjusted for areas where home values are significantly higher than the national average.
That limit in 2023 will be $1,089,300, which is 118,500 higher than in 2022.
That includes D.C. and every county surrounding it in the region. The New York and New Jersey areas, along with parts of Southern and Northern California, one county in Wyoming, and two in Utah are all subject to the highest conforming limit. See a map.
FHFA applies the higher conforming limit to areas in which 115% of the local median home value exceeds the baseline conforming loan limit. Those limits are then set at 150% of the baseline conforming loan limit.
Other statutory provisions establish loan limits in Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Those areas also have a 2023 conforming loan limit of $1,089,300.