Through the Standard Mortgage Program (SMP), the University offers favorable mortgage rates and terms to eligible faculty and staff. Eligibility to participate involves a combination of your position or rank, the property location, and loan underwriting requirements. These loans are administered by the University and mortgage payments are made through payroll deduction.
SMP Eligibility
SMP eligibility is determined by your position or rank. Please note that Princeton University retirees are not eligible for a new mortgage through the program. If you are in negotiations for an eligible faculty or staff position, contact Mortgage Services at (609) 258-3123 to discuss your options.
Position or Rank
| Faculty (Three-Year Appointments or Longer) | Full professor
Associate professor
Assistant professor
Lecturer with rank of professor
Senior lecturer
University Lecturer
Professor of the Practice |
| On-Campus Research and Specialist Staff (Three-Year Appointments or Longer) | Senior research scholar
Research scholar
Senior professional specialist
Professional specialist
Academic research manager
Senior academic research manager |
| On-Campus Administrative and Professional Staff | Administrative staff (ranks 8 and above)
Head Coach
IT professional staff (ranks 040 and above) |
| Library | Librarian-III
Librarian and senior librarian
Associate librarian |
| Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) | ADX
Administrative staff (ranks 8 and above)
Engineering staff (ranks 8 and above)
Research Physicist (ranks RES 03 and above) |
Not eligible?
Employees in term positions normally are not eligible to participate. However, you may be eligible for a favorable mortgage through an external lender. For further clarification, contact Mortgage Services at (609) 258-3123.
Property Location and Loan Origination Requirements
In addition to you meeting the participation requirements above, the property must be eligible. Significant terms and conditions include:
The property must be a single-family home and your primary residence. Condominiums and townhomes are eligible. Multifamily residences (2+ units) and homes containing small rental apartments are not. Mortgage Services can clarify as necessary.
Only first mortgages on newly acquired properties are allowed. The program does not provide loans for properties owned prior to employment by Princeton University, for a property owned before you became eligible, or for refinancing.
Purchased property must be located within a nine-mile radius of the central campus, as outlined on our Eligibility Map. Properties in the city of Trenton are eligible. Contact Mortgage Services at 609-258-3123 to confirm that the property is in an eligible location.
The loan limit is 90 percent of the appraised property value or the purchase price, whichever is lower. The current maximum loan limit allowed is $1,000,000.
Buyers pay normal closing costs including, but not limited to, attorneys' fees, title insurance costs, survey fees, and recording fees.
Rates and Terms
The Standard Mortgage Program targets an interest rate that is 20% below the prevailing local commercial rate for residential mortgage loans. The IRS long-term applicable federal rate (AFR) serves as a rate floor, and the program has an absolute rate floor of 2.50%. Even if both the targeted interest rate and the IRS AFR are lower than 2.50%, the actual University rate will not fall below the absolute rate floor of 2.50%. The University interest rate is locked in for a 60-day period based on the rate in effect on the date an application is accepted.
Rates for October 2024
| CONFORMING MORTGAGES (Up to $766,550) | 4.800% |
| JUMBO MORTGAGES ($766,551 to $1,000,000) | 5.300% |
These rates are based on market rates as of October 1, 2024. Under the program, mortgages are issued for 30- or 40-year terms, with the same interest rate applying to either term.
