No. At closing, every major program except USDA lends on the lower of your purchase price or the appraised value, so a high appraisal does not shrink your PMI. Conventional, FHA, and VA all calculate loan-to-value from the lesser of the two numbers. Put 10% down and have the appraisal come in 10% high, and you are still treated as a 10%-down borrower with PMI. (USDA is the carve-out: it can lend on appraised value and even finance certain costs above the price.) A generous appraisal only protects you in the opposite case, when the value comes in below the contract price. The extra equity can still shorten how long you carry PMI. On a conventional loan there are two separate removal paths, and they work differently: - Original-value path (federal law). You can request cancellation when the balance reaches 80% of the original value, and PMI drops automatically at 78% of original value if you are current. Extra principal speeds this up. - Current-value path (a new appraisal). Under agency servicing rules you can request removal based on today's value: generally 75% loan-to-value if the loan is two to five years old, or 80% once it is older than five years. Inside two years, current value usually counts only when documented improvements (a major renovation, say) created the equity, and the bar stays at 75%. A clean payment history is required throughout. You also cannot close and immediately refinance onto the higher value. On a conventional refinance within roughly the first 12 months of ownership, the lender uses the lesser of your purchase price and the new appraisal, so plan on about a year before a higher value counts. The six-month figure people quote is a different rule, the minimum time on title before a cash-out refinance. Your servicer can confirm the exact thresholds for your loan.