One line, and a county sitting on both sides of it
For 2026 the baseline conforming limit on a one-unit property is $832,750 (FHFA, November 2025). No Pennsylvania county is designated high-cost, so that figure is the line in Chester County, in Philadelphia and in Erie alike. A first mortgage above it is a jumbo loan, and jumbo loans are held or sold privately, so no agency guide governs them.
That is the single most important thing to understand here. Below the line you are dealing with published rules. Above it you are dealing with a lender’s own credit policy, and policies differ from one institution to the next by amounts large enough to change what you can buy.
The county-wide picture puts the line in perspective: $594,900 was the closed median for Chester County in July 2026, up about 3% (mychesco.com). Most of the county is nowhere near jumbo. Then you drive east.
Berwyn over, Malvern under
Two postal areas three stops apart on the Paoli/Thorndale Line tell the story. The Berwyn area posted a $1,197,450 sold median in July 2026 across 42 sales, with 21 days on market. The Malvern area posted $825,000 across 125 sales, at 37 days (Movoto, July 2026; both are postal areas, so they take in surrounding township stock).
Run those against the line. Berwyn’s median sits about $365,000 above $832,750, so a typical purchase there is a jumbo transaction before anyone talks about the down payment. Malvern’s median sits $7,750 below it, close enough that the loan type in a Malvern offer depends on how much you put down and whether the seller takes the first number.
That is a strange place to shop. A buyer looking at both towns in the same weekend is shopping two underwriting systems at once, and one accepted counteroffer can move a Malvern purchase from the first into the second.
The down payment is a lender’s decision
Every figure in this section is a policy from a named source, and none of them is a rule.
| Item | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum down payment | 25% | typical, per U.S. Bank (August 2026) |
| Maximum financing, primary residence | up to 89.99% of value | typical, per Chase (August 2026) |
| Second home | 15% down | typical, per Chase (August 2026) |
| Investment property | 20% down | typical, per Chase (August 2026) |
| Down payment range | 10% to 20% | typical, per NerdWallet (December 2025) |
The spread is the point. One national bank publishes a 25% minimum while another publishes financing to just under 90%, and both are describing the same product on the same day. Where your file lands against those published minimums is the whole question on a jumbo purchase, and it is not something a website can answer. It is subject to lender approval.
Score, debt ratios and reserves, same story
U.S. Bank describes 740 or better as typical for its jumbo program, with approvals possible as low as 660 depending on the rest of the file, debt-to-income generally under 45% including the new payment and up to 50% in some cases, and at least two months of reserves (read August 2026). Bank of America’s published examples assume a score of 740 or higher (read August 2026). NerdWallet reports 700 as a common floor, 740 to 760 for the best pricing, ratios of 43% to 45% and six to twelve months of reserves (December 2025).
Two months of reserves against twelve months of reserves is not a rounding difference on a $1.2 million purchase. On a jumbo file the reserve requirement often decides the deal before the credit score does, so it is worth asking about early, in dollars, for the specific loan amount.
Two ways a big number stays conforming
Not every expensive purchase needs a jumbo loan.
The conforming limits step up with unit count: $1,066,250 on two units, $1,288,800 on three and $1,601,750 on four (FHFA, November 2025). A two-unit building in a borough at $1 million is still conforming territory.
And VA sets no loan limit for a borrower with full entitlement; the $832,750 figure only comes into play on partial entitlement (va.gov, August 2025). A veteran buying on the eastern side of the county may have a route the price tag does not suggest. VA loans covers the entitlement math.