Borrowing $10,000 more in Massachusetts can push your mortgage into a high-balance or jumbo tier with stricter down payment and underwriting rules.
The 2026 conforming loan limits for all 14 counties depend on your property's unit count and the state's three county tiers.
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Worked examples and the county table show how to find your limit, identify your loan tier, and size your down payment to stay within it.
2026 Conforming Loan Limits by County
Conforming loan limits are the largest mortgages that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can buy. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) sets them each year, and in Massachusetts the limit depends on both the county and the number of units in the property.
| County | 1 unit | 2 units | 3 units | 4 units | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barnstable | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 | Baseline |
| Berkshire | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 | Baseline |
| Bristol | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 | Baseline |
| Dukes | $1,249,125 | $1,599,375 | $1,933,200 | $2,402,625 | Ceiling |
| Essex | $962,550 | $1,232,250 | $1,489,500 | $1,851,100 | High-cost |
| Franklin | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 | Baseline |
| Hampden | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 | Baseline |
| Hampshire | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 | Baseline |
| Middlesex | $962,550 | $1,232,250 | $1,489,500 | $1,851,100 | High-cost |
| Nantucket | $1,249,125 | $1,599,375 | $1,933,200 | $2,402,625 | Ceiling |
| Norfolk | $962,550 | $1,232,250 | $1,489,500 | $1,851,100 | High-cost |
| Plymouth | $962,550 | $1,232,250 | $1,489,500 | $1,851,100 | High-cost |
| Suffolk | $962,550 | $1,232,250 | $1,489,500 | $1,851,100 | High-cost |
| Worcester | $832,750 | $1,066,250 | $1,288,800 | $1,601,750 | Baseline |
One rule shapes every calculation on this page: the limit applies to your loan amount, not the purchase price. Your down payment decides which side of the line you land on, as the examples below show. Because FHFA updates these limits every year, confirm the current figures with your lender when you structure an offer.
The Three County Tiers
Massachusetts counties fall into three groups for 2026 based on local home prices.
FHFA gives an area a higher limit when 115% of its local median home value exceeds the national baseline, capped at 150%. HUD's 2026 median prices show why: $837,000 across the five Boston-metro counties (115% of $837,000 is $962,550), $1,520,000 in Dukes County, and $2,375,000 in Nantucket County, compared with $474,000 in Worcester County and $325,000 in Hampden County.
Baseline: $832,750 (Seven Counties)
Half of Massachusetts counties use the $832,750 national one-unit baseline: Barnstable, Berkshire, Bristol, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, and Worcester counties. Any conventional loan above the baseline for its unit count in these seven counties is a jumbo loan.
High-Cost: $962,550 (Five Greater Boston Counties)
Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, and Suffolk counties make up the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metropolitan area and share a $962,550 one-unit limit. That gives buyers in Greater Boston $129,800 more conforming borrowing room on a single-family home or condo than buyers in the baseline counties.
Ceiling: $1,249,125 (Dukes and Nantucket)
Dukes County (Martha's Vineyard) and Nantucket County sit at FHFA's statutory maximum, which is 150% of the national baseline. On the Islands, a one-unit conforming loan reaches $1,249,125.
Standard Conforming, High-Balance or Jumbo?
In the seven high-cost and ceiling counties, there are three conventional loan tiers rather than two, and the tier determines your underwriting and down payment options.
- Standard conforming: A conventional mortgage at or below the national baseline for the unit count ($832,750 for one unit). Standard rules apply in all 14 counties up to these amounts.
- High-balance conforming: A mortgage above the baseline limit but at or below the county's higher cap. In Massachusetts, high-balance loans exist only in Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk, Dukes, and Nantucket counties.
- Jumbo: A mortgage above the county's conforming limit. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac cannot buy it, so each lender sets its own credit, reserve, and down payment rules for jumbo loans in Massachusetts.
| Feature | Standard conforming | High-balance | Jumbo |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-unit range, baseline counties | Up to $832,750 | None | Above $832,750 |
| 1-unit range, Greater Boston | Up to $832,750 | $832,751 to $962,550 | Above $962,550 |
| 1-unit range, Dukes and Nantucket | Up to $832,750 | $832,751 to $1,249,125 | Above $1,249,125 |
| Bought by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac | Yes | Yes | No |
| Underwriting | Automated (DU) or manual | Automated (DU) only | Lender's own rules |
| 3% down standard option (1 unit) | Eligible | Not eligible | Lender's own rules |
| 5% down on 2-4 units | Eligible (DU) | Not eligible | Lender's own rules |
For buyers in Greater Boston and on the Islands, the lowest down payment options stop at the baseline limit even in a high-cost county.
Every high-balance loan must go through Desktop Underwriter (DU), Fannie Mae's automated underwriting system. Fannie Mae also excludes high-balance loans from both the standard 3% down one-unit option and the 5% down option for a two-to-four-unit primary residence.
That means putting 5% down on multifamily mortgages in Massachusetts works only up to $1,066,250 on a two-family, $1,288,800 on a three-family, and $1,601,750 on a four-family, even in Suffolk or Middlesex County. For credit scores, debt-to-income ratios, the 3% down programs, and private mortgage insurance rules on standard loans, see our guide to conventional loans in Massachusetts.
Examples: How Your Down Payment and Unit Count Set the Tier
Because the cutoff is based on the loan amount rather than the sale price, changing your down payment or the number of units can move a purchase from one tier to another; you can test your own numbers in our home affordability calculator.
A $1,100,000 Single-Family Home in Middlesex County
In Middlesex County, the one-unit baseline is $832,750 and the high-cost limit is $962,550.
| Down payment | Loan amount | Tier |
|---|---|---|
| 25% ($275,000) | $825,000 | Standard conforming |
| 20% ($220,000) | $880,000 | High-balance (DU only) |
| 10% ($110,000) | $990,000 | Jumbo |
The same $1,100,000 house becomes three different types of mortgage depending on how much you put down.
A $900,000 Loan in Worcester County: One Unit vs. Two
Suppose you need to borrow $900,000 in Worcester County, which is a baseline county. On a single-family home, that loan is $67,250 over the $832,750 one-unit limit, making it a jumbo loan. On a two-family duplex, the Worcester County limit is $1,066,250, so the same $900,000 loan is a standard conforming mortgage.
Check Your Massachusetts Conventional Loan Eligibility
Conforming vs. FHA Loan Limits
In Greater Boston and on the Islands, the 2026 conforming and FHA loan limits are identical; in the other seven counties, the conforming limit is higher, with the largest gap in Central and Western Massachusetts.
| County or region | Conforming (1 unit) | FHA (1 unit) | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dukes & Nantucket | $1,249,125 | $1,249,125 | Same |
| Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk | $962,550 | $962,550 | Same |
| Barnstable | $832,750 | $828,000 | $4,750 |
| Bristol | $832,750 | $787,750 | $45,000 |
| Worcester | $832,750 | $545,100 | $287,650 |
| Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire | $832,750 | $541,287 | $291,463 |
See our guide to FHA loan limits in Massachusetts for the two- to four-unit FHA caps in each county, or compare all of your Massachusetts home loan options side by side.
How the 2026 Limits Were Set
FHFA adjusts the national baseline each year to match the change in U.S. home prices. Its expanded-data House Price Index rose 3.26% from the third quarter of 2024 to the third quarter of 2025, which lifted the one-unit baseline by $26,250, from $806,500 in 2025 to $832,750 in 2026.
| Group | 2025 | 2026 | Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baseline counties | $806,500 | $832,750 | +$26,250 |
| Greater Boston counties | $914,250 | $962,550 | +$48,300 |
| Dukes and Nantucket | $1,209,750 | $1,249,125 | +$39,375 |
For context, the statewide median single-family sale price was $715,000 in June 2026, so most Massachusetts home purchases fall well below even the baseline limit; the high-balance and jumbo rules matter most at higher price points.
When Will the 2027 Limits Be Announced?
As of October 28, 2026, FHFA had not announced the conforming loan limits for 2027. FHFA released the 2026 limits on November 25, 2025, and the 2026 figures on this page remain the current limits until the 2027 list is published.
Next Steps
Knowing your county's cap lets you set your down payment strategy before you write an offer.
- Find your target county and unit count in the table above to see the 2026 baseline and county limits.
- Subtract different down payment amounts from your target purchase price to see whether your loan lands in the standard conforming, high-balance, or jumbo tier.
- Compare conventional, high-balance, FHA, VA, and jumbo quotes across multiple wholesale lenders with our team, LLC. Starting an eligibility check or pre-approval requires no hard credit pull, pre-approvals typically take 1 to 3 business days once your documents are in, and you can book a free 15-minute call with a loan officer to run the numbers for your price point.
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