A conventional mortgage that conforms to the loan amounts and mortgage guidelines used by the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA or "Fannie Mae"), and/or the guidelines of The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC or "Freddie Mac").

The conforming loan limit for 2006 on a 2-Unit property is $801,950.

The conforming loan limit for 2006 on a 3-Unit property is $645,300.

The conforming loan limit for 2006 on a 2-Unit property is $533,850.

The interest rates offered for the conforming loans are always lower than the rates offered for non-conforming loans. A jumbo loan is an example of a non-conforming loan.

A conforming mortgage is one that is packaged for resale on the secondary mortgage market to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, two quasi-governmental agencies that buy mortgages from cooperating lenders. Both agencies set limits annually on the size loans they'll buy. In 1999, the conforming loan limit was increased to $240,000 from $227,150 in 1998.

The current conforming loan limit for 2006 on a one unit property is $417,000.