FHA mortgages are issued by private lenders and insured by the Federal Housing Administration. Conventional loans aren’t insured by the federal government.
An FHA mortgage can only be used for a primary residence, but a conventional loan can be used to buy a house for any purpose.
FHA loans have looser credit score and debt-to-income ratio requirements.
If you put down less than 20 percent on a conventional loan, you’d have to pay for private mortgage insurance until you reached 20 percent equity.
If you put down less than 10 percent for an FHA mortgage, you’d have to pay for mortgage insurance until you pay off or refinance the loan.
