What is a Condo Mortgage Loan and what are the requirements?
Condo Mortgage Loans VS Single Family Home Mortgage Loans
Using the criteria for condominium projects, you can quickly identify ineligible condominium projects, determine which review your condominium project falls under and identify the eligibility requirements you must satisfy to sell Condominium Unit Mortgages to Freddie Mac. In addition, projects that meet certain requirements need not undergo a full project review.
Established and New Condominium Projects
With two unique project statuses, each with clear and comprehensive criteria, it’s easy to determine which eligibility requirements and warranties you need to satisfy to sell Condominium Unit Mortgages to Freddie Mac.
| Project status | Definition |
|---|---|
| Established Condominium Projects | It is an Established Condominium Project if:
|
| New Condominium Projects | It is a New Condominium Project if:
|
Download our Condominium Unit Mortgages and Project Reviews fact sheet [PDF] for more details.
Lender Benefits
- Quickly identify condominium projects and determine which eligibility requirements you must satisfy to sell us Condominium Unit Mortgages.
- Specific condominium project criteria help you get projects approved easily and sell more Condominium Unit Mortgages to Freddie Mac.
Streamlined Review for Condominium Projects
We’ve combined speed, flexibility and simplicity in Freddie Mac’s streamlined review for condominium projects. With streamlined review for condominium projects, mortgages secured by attached or detached units are eligible for delivery without a full project review, provided that:
- The unit must be in an Established Condominium Project
- The unit must secure a mortgage that is originated on a spot loan basis
- The mortgage must meet the required LTV/TLTV/HTLTV ratios for the occupancy type
- The unit is not a manufactured home and not an investment property
Lender Benefits:
- The process is easy and cost-effective. When you meet the eligibility requirements of a streamlined review, you will not be required to comply with the project review requirements for an Established Condominium Project saving you precious time and resources.
- Approve more of your Condominium Unit Mortgages, without going through a full project review. You can quickly identify which condominium projects are eligible for a streamlined review.
Other Types of Condominium Projects
Our comprehensive requirements for 2- to 4-unit condominium projects and detached condominium projects are designed to help you sell more Condominium Unit Mortgages to Freddie Mac. Plus, our reciprocal review options provide you with more ways to quickly obtain a project review.
With reciprocal review options, you have more flexibility, and more sources for condominium reviews, saving you significant time and improving your front-end process with borrowers and back-end operations. Acceptable reciprocal reviews include:
- Fannie Mae-approved projects
- Expedited Condo Project Manager (CPM) Reviews
- Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-approved condominium projects for FHA mortgages, available online at https://entp.hud.gov/idapp/html/condlook.cfm
Lender Benefits
- Gain eligibility for more of your mortgages secured by units in detached condominium projects. Detached condominium projects need only to meet the definition of a detached condominium project and the general project eligibility requirements.
- Reciprocal reviews may provide you more flexibility and save you significant time, improving your front-end process with borrowers and back-end operations.
Get More Information
- Refer to Guide Chapter 42 for complete requirements for Condominium Unit Mortgages.
- For more information on Condominium Project Reviews, print out our factsheet on Condominium Unit Mortgages and Project Reviews [PDF].
Fannie Mae/ Freddie mac have developed higher standards for allowing homeowners to obtain mortgages in Condo Buildings or Communities. These higher standards are referred to as a “Project Review” When obtaining a purchase or refinance mortgage in a condo building or community, it must be already approved or pass a Project Review. Banks could turn down your loan regardless of credit and income if the Project Review is not acceptable. We offer two solutions to resolve any concerns for a Project Review:
Solution No 1. We do not require a project approval on communities when you make a 25% down payment or equity position on primary residences and 30% down payment or equity position on second homes. Investment properties always require a project review
Solution No 2. . Many buildings and communities in Florida are already approved in our database. If you are interested in purchasing or refinancing in a building or community give us a call and check upfront to see a project review is required. If we do not have an approval on file then we can have the community fill out a one page questionnaire and appraisal is required for approval. The process takes about 72 hours to complete. With thousands of condo mortgages closed we make the approval process simple.
How Do I apply for a Condo Loan?
We need a lot of information on your Condo loan application. You will need to provide the us with a wide range of details including:
- All addresses where you have lived in the previous two years.
- Your employer’s name and addresses for the last two years, plus the amount of your Gross Monthly Salary.
- W2s for the past two years.
- Income tax forms submitted for the last two years.
Gather all of this information to begin your Condo Loan application so you will have everything handy to complete your loan forms at one time and give us a call!
