How to Get HOA Documents for a Conventional Loan Condo Review

The Quick Read: The lender, not the buyer, reviews the condo project, but you will usually be the one pushing the paperwork along. Ask the listing agent for the management company’s contact, request the package in writing, and have the HOA send the completed questionnaire and supporting records straight to your loan officer. Do it before you spend money on an inspection or appraisal.

Why the Lender Needs the Building’s Paperwork

A conventional condo loan has two files: yours and the building’s. Fannie Mae’s Selling Guide names a Condominium Project Questionnaire, Form 1076, as the standard tool for collecting project data. A lender may use that form or its own. The review sits on top of your borrower underwriting. It does not replace it.

Here’s the catch. A strong score and a solid down payment cannot rescue a failed project. If the building is ineligible, every unit in it is ineligible for the standard conventional path. Across the wholesale programs Lendmire places files with, the borrower side (a 620 floor, a 50% automated ratio ceiling, 95% leverage on a standard purchase) rarely causes the surprise. The building does. Each figure is subject to lender guidelines and a complete review of property type, leverage, and credit.

For a deeper look at how the program works for a home buyer, see Lendmire’s conventional loan programs overview.

Who Asks for What

Mixed-up ordering causes most delays. Here is the usual split:

The questionnaire is project-level and goes to the lender. The estoppel is unit-level and goes to title. They are not the same thing, and ordering one does not satisfy the other. Tell your agent which is which, so nobody orders a duplicate.

What Is in the Package

A lender must collect more than the questionnaire when that form doesn’t support the project’s eligibility. Selling Guide B4-2.1-03 lists HOA meeting minutes, financial statements and engineer’s reports as examples. A typical package covers:

• The completed, signed and dated questionnaire
• Current budget and financial statements
• Meeting minutes
• Insurance certificates
• A reserve study, where one is being used
• Engineer or inspection reports, where they exist
• Anything showing litigation or special assessments

Some associations charge for the package. The amount varies, and so does who pays under the purchase contract. Ask about the fee when you make the request.

Step by Step: Getting the Documents

1. Tell your loan officer it’s a condo on day one. Review type depends on project size, unit type, occupancy, transaction and project age.

2. Ask the listing agent for the manager’s contact. If the building is self-managed, ask for the board president or secretary.

3. Send a written request. List the items, name your lender, and ask that the package go directly to the lender’s processor. Set a deadline.

4. Let the lender check project status. Per Fannie Mae’s Condo Project Manager FAQ, lenders must confirm the project is not marked “Unavailable,” and they can search by project name or address. An Unavailable status ends the conventional path for the whole building. Borrowers generally can’t look this up themselves.

5. Follow up on a regular schedule. A short, polite note every few business days beats silence.

6. Check the package before it’s submitted. See the checklist below.

7. Appraisal runs alongside. The unit itself must also be safe, sound and structurally secure.

A sample request, adapted to your situation: “I’m under contract on [unit number] and my lender needs the condominium project questionnaire, current budget, financial statements, meeting minutes, insurance certificates and any reserve study. Please send them to [processor name and email] by [date]. Let me know if there’s a fee.”.

Triage Before You Spend Money

Think of this as a ten-minute screen. Before paying for an inspection and appraisal, ask for the key documents first: the budget, the recent meeting minutes, and the questionnaire. Then look for these warning signs:

• Thin reserves. A budget that sets aside little for replacements is a warning sign. Fannie Mae measures reserves as the budgeted replacement-reserve allocation divided by annual budgeted assessment income.
• Delinquent owners. Heavy unpaid dues can make a project Unavailable, even when your own loan looks clean.
• Litigation. Pending suits against the association are an ineligibility factor, with limited minor exceptions.
• Special assessments and critical repairs. Minutes full of roof, structural or facade talk deserve a hard look.
• Concentration and commercial space. Too many units held by one owner, or too much commercial space, can trip the review.

When the HOA Is Slow, Silent or Self-Managed

An HOA does not always cooperate on your timeline. The questionnaire is a lender requirement, not a federal mandate on the association. If the HOA refuses, the lender cannot finish its review. So escalate in order: the manager, then a board officer, then ask your agent to press the listing side.

Small, self-managed buildings often have no standard form handy. Hand the board the lender’s blank questionnaire and offer to answer questions. Boards usually respond better to a short, specific ask than to a long list.

Also protect your contract. Ask your agent whether your purchase agreement has a condo-document or financing contingency, and whether an extension is available if the package runs late. Your lender and agent should watch that clock together.

Check the Package Before It Goes In

Incomplete packages cost the most time. Look for:

• A questionnaire that is signed, dated and recent
• Missing pages or unreadable scans
• Names and addresses that match your contract
• Insurance certificates that haven’t expired
• Financials that are current, not last cycle’s
• A reserve study with a funding method the lender can use

One detail matters. Fannie Mae says a reserve study built on “baseline funding,” where cash balance just never drops below zero, can’t be used to waive the standard reserve test. If your building’s study uses that method, tell your loan officer early.

Stale paperwork can force a redo.

Where the General Rule Breaks

Not every condo gets the full treatment.

• Waiver of project review. Fannie Mae waives the review for certain project types, but the unit must still meet property standards, and the project can’t be Unavailable. Condo hotels, houseboat projects, timeshares and segmented ownership stay out.
• Smaller and detached. Fannie Mae’s FAQ says critical-repair and special-assessment review isn’t required for detached units or 2–4 unit projects. For 11 or more attached units, it applies. It also applies to 5–10 attached units inside a larger development or master association.

Commercial space is capped at one unit in a 2–4 unit project.

• Newer rules. Project review requirements and reserve expectations can change over time. Ask your loan officer which version applies to your application date.

Occupancy matters too. Leverage depends on how you’ll use the home. A principal residence reaches 95% LTV, or 97% for a first-time buyer on a one-unit fixed-rate loan. A second home tops out at 90%. That’s the whole answer on investment use here. These figures are subject to lender guidelines and full file review.

What Happens if the Building Fails

A single failed project item makes the whole project ineligible for the standard path. You then have a few choices:

1. Ask whether the HOA can fix it. Some issues, like a missing document or a stale form, are fixable. Underfunded reserves or heavy delinquency are slower to change.

2. Ask about an exception. A lender may request one for a project of merit, though it isn’t a given.

3. Explore other loan types. Portfolio or non-warrantable loans, FHA and VA each have their own project approval rules. Your loan officer can walk through them.

4. Walk away. If the building is weak, the same problems may follow you at resale or refinance. The Unavailable list is a lender tool, not public.

What It Does to Your Budget

Condo dues are usually paid directly to the association, not through your mortgage payment, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A servicer may occasionally agree to escrow them. Factor dues into what you can afford.

Underfunded reserves can come back as higher dues or special assessments later. Closing-cost items such as prorated dues and document fees may appear on your Closing Disclosure, and who pays varies by contract and state.

Key Terms Defined

Condo project questionnaire: A form the HOA fills out so the lender can judge the building’s finances, insurance, litigation and ownership mix.

Estoppel letter: A unit-level statement of dues and balances, usually ordered by the title company or closing attorney.

Unavailable status: A Fannie Mae flag meaning loans on units in the project are not eligible for purchase.

Reserve study: An engineer’s or specialist’s estimate of future major repairs and the funding needed to cover them.

A Realistic Timeline, Described in Steps

Picture a buyer under contract on a mid-size condo. In the first days, the buyer’s agent gets the manager’s contact and the loan officer sends the lender’s questionnaire. In the first stretch, the buyer sends the written request and checks in on a steady cadence. Once the package lands, the processor checks status, dates and signatures. Only then does the appraisal and project review move toward a decision. If a red flag appears, the buyer finds out before the money is spent, not after.

If you are buying a home and want to see whether a conventional loan fits your file, Lendmire can help you compare the options and what each one asks of the file. Condo-specific questions are easier to answer before you’re under contract than after.

If a building has legal trouble, Lendmire’s piece Can a Small Walk-Up Condo in HOA Litigation Get a DSCR Loan? covers a related edge case, though it speaks to a different loan type than this one.

For your own numbers, request a scenario review with Lendmire.

About Lendmire

Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a mortgage brokerage serving homeowners and home buyers in 16 states. FHA, VA, conventional and jumbo purchase and refinance loans are arranged through wholesale lending channels; Lendmire brokers the financing and the lender underwrites each application. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.

References

1. Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-2.1-01 General Information on Project Standards

2. Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-2.1-03 Ineligible Projects

3. Fannie Mae Condo Project Manager FAQ

4. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: HOA dues and your mortgage payment