Official: California Conforming Loan Limits for 2024

It’s official: California’s conforming loan limits have been increased for 2024 due to rising home prices nationwide. And we have all the details!

In a previous blog post, we speculated that the statewide conforming loan limit for most California counties would go up to $750,000 in 2024. That figure has been widely reported in the news over the past couple of weeks. But as it turns out, housing officials raised the conforming loan limits even more than expected.

In California, the 2024 loan limits for conforming conventional mortgage loans will range from $766,550 to $1,149,825, depending on the county. Borrowers with sufficient income can borrow more than these limits, by using what’s commonly referred to as a “jumbo” mortgage loan.

What Is a Loan Limit, Exactly?

The “conforming” label refers to a conventional mortgage loan that adheres to the guidelines used by the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. These guidelines include specific criteria related to the loan size, creditworthiness of borrowers, and other factors.

Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae can only purchase loans within a certain size range. The maximum amount for such loans is referred to as the conforming loan limit, because it “conforms” to these size restrictions and can therefore be sold to Freddie or Fannie.

Earlier this month, federal housing officials announced that they would be increasing these loan limits for 2024, in response to home price gains across the country.

According to a November 2023 announcement from the Federal Housing Finance Agency:

“The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today announced the conforming loan limit values (CLLs) for mortgages Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) will acquire in 2024. In most of the United States, the 2024 CLL value for one-unit properties will be $766,550, an increase of $40,350 from 2023.”

California Conforming Loan Limits for 2024

Here are the 2024 conforming loan limits for all 58 California counties. These limits apply to single-family or “one-unit” properties. Multifamily properties like duplex and triplex homes have higher limits, which you can find on the FHFA.gov website.

COUNTY	2024 LOAN LIMIT
Alameda	$1,149,825
Alpine	$766,550
Amador	$766,550
Butte	$766,550
Calaveras	$766,550
Colusa	$766,550
Contra Costa	$1,149,825
Del Norte	$766,550
El Dorado	$766,550
Fresno	$766,550
Glenn	$766,550
Humboldt	$766,550
Imperial	$766,550
Inyo	$766,550
Kern	$766,550
Kings	$766,550
Lake	$766,550
Lassen	$766,550
Los Angeles	$1,149,825
Madera	$766,550
Marin	$1,149,825
Mariposa	$766,550
Mendocino	$766,550
Merced	$766,550
Modoc	$766,550
Mono	$766,550
Monterey	$920,000
Napa	$1,017,750
Nevada	$766,550
Orange	$1,149,550
Placer	$766,550
Plumas	$766,550
Riverside	$766,550
Sacramento	$766,550
San Benito	$1,149,550
San Bernardino	$766,550
San Diego	$1,006,250
San Francisco	$1,149,825
San Joaquin	$766,550
San Luis Obispo	$929,200
San Mateo	$1,149,825
Santa Barbara	$838,350
Santa Clara	$1,149,825
Santa Cruz	$1,149,825
Shasta	$766,550
Sierra	$766,550
Siskiyou	$766,550
Solano	$766,750
Sonoma	$877,450
Stanislaus	$766,550
Sutter	$766,550
Tehama	$766,550
Trinity	$766,550
Tulare	$766,550
Tuolumne	$766,550
Ventura	$954,500
Yolo	$766,550
Yuba	$766,550

A Response to Rising Home Prices

The conforming loan limits for 2024 were increased in response to nationwide home-price growth that occurred during 2023.

The day after they announced the revised limits, the Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that home prices in the United States “rose by 5.5% between the third quarter of 2022 and the third quarter of 2023.”

You’ll notice from the table above that there’s a wide spectrum between the “floor” and “ceiling” for California conforming loan limits. Most counties across the state have a limit of $766,550 for 2024. But at the other end of the spectrum, parts of Southern California and the Bay Area have caps as high as $1,149,825.

These loan limits are based on median home prices, which can vary from one county to the next. Generally speaking, more expensive real estate markets tend to have higher loan limits, and vice versa.

Frequently Asked Questions

Home buyers in California tend to have a lot of questions when it comes to the maximum amount they can borrow. The amount you can borrow will largely depend on your current income and debt situation, along with your credit score and the size of your down payment.

But these loan limits play a role in the equation as well. So let’s address some of the most common questions relating to conforming loan limits in California.

Do these limits apply to all borrowers?

In a broad sense, there are two main types of mortgage loans — conventional and government-backed. The government-backed mortgage programs include USDA, FHA and VA home loans.

A conventional mortgage loan, on the other hand, does not receive any kind of government backing or insurance. The conforming loan limits listed above specifically apply to conventional financing. The FHA has its own set of limits, which we’ll cover in a separate blog post.

What purpose do these loan limits serve?

As mentioned earlier, these limits apply to loans that are sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. These two organizations add liquidity to the mortgage market by purchasing loans from lenders. This allows lenders to make more loans to help borrowers purchase homes.

The conforming loan limits establish parameters for the types of loans that Fannie and Freddie are able to buy. They also limit risk by restricting the size of those loans.

What if I need to borrow a bigger amount?

Home buyers in California can borrow more than the conforming loan limit for their particular county, by using what’s known as a jumbo mortgage loan.

If you borrow more than the conventional loan limit for your county, you have entered the jumbo category. Unlike their smaller conforming counterparts, jumbo loans cannot be sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. They are typically sold to investors instead.

Because of the larger amount being borrowed, the requirements for jumbo loans can be a bit stricter. Borrowers seeking a jumbo mortgage product will need to have good credit, manageable debt, and enough income to cover the monthly payments. A larger down payment might be required as well.