The Quick Read: It depends on the building, not only the unit. Hard money leverage is set by deal type and investor experience, and a condo is eligible collateral. A weak association can still pull a lender below those tiers, so condos often get less than a house would.
- Fix-and-flip loans run 85% to 93% of project cost by experience tier, always capped at 75% of after-repair value.
- Bridge purchases with no rehab are sized on a loan-to-cost basis, and the loan-to-value ceiling for them is 80%, not 65%. Cash-out and rate/term refinances run up to 65% of value.
- Building problems (litigation, thin reserves, heavy investor ownership) are the usual reason a condo is sized lower.
- Loans go up to $5,000,000 on 6-to-18-month interest-only terms. All of this varies by lender, property, and experience.
Key Terms Defined
A few terms carry this whole topic. Here they are in plain words.
- Loan-to-cost (LTC): the loan as a share of what the project costs you, meaning purchase price plus rehab. Hard money flip loans are usually sized this way.
- After-repair value (ARV): what the lender expects the unit to be worth once the work is done.
- Loan-to-value (LTV): the loan as a share of the property’s current value. Hard money purchase and refinance loans are often sized this way.
- Warrantable condo: a building that meets standard project rules on investor ownership, reserves, and litigation. A non-warrantable condo fails one or more of those tests.
- HOA questionnaire: a form the association fills out for the lender. It discloses dues, reserves, lawsuits, and special assessments.
- Condotel: a hotel-style condo with a front desk and an on-site rental program.
- DSCR: debt service coverage ratio. It compares a property’s rent to its full monthly obligation (principal, interest, taxes, insurance, and dues).
What this loan actually costs to carry.
Hard money is sized against the project and priced by time. Enter the deal and see how much the program will lend, the cash required at closing, the carry while you hold it, and what is left at the exit.
Leverage tiers on the current program: 85% with fewer than 2, 90% with 2 or more, 93% with 5 or more completed projects — every tier capped at 75% of after-repair value. Loan amounts up to $5,000,000, larger by exception; terms of 6 to 18 months, interest-only, no prepayment penalty. The rehab portion funds in draws against completed work, not at closing.
Program parameters shown update from Lendmire’s centralized guideline source. Rate, points, and months are editable assumptions, not quoted terms.
Cost cap sets the loan · positive spread
Illustrative estimate only — not a quote, Loan Estimate, approval, or commitment to lend. Rate, points, and months are editable assumptions. Hard money is business-purpose financing for real estate investors, not a consumer mortgage. Leverage on the current program tops out at 93% of project cost for investors with a documented track record, capped at 75% of after-repair value, with rehab funding up to 100% of the documented budget released in draws; actual terms vary by lender, borrower experience, property, and exit. Lendmire is a mortgage broker, not a lender.
How Does a Lender Set the Limit on Any Hard Money Loan?
The limit comes from the deal and the borrower, not from a single national cap. A hard money loan is short-term, asset-based financing from a private lender. The lender sizes it against the collateral, the plan, and your track record.
Across the wholesale network Lendmire works with, the tiers look like this. Every figure varies by lender, property, and experience, and nothing here is a commitment to lend.
| Deal type | Leverage | Measured against |
|---|---|---|
| Flip, 5+ completed projects | Up to 93% | Project cost (and 75% of ARV) |
| Flip, 2+ completed projects | Up to 90% | Project cost (and 75% of ARV) |
| Flip, under 2 projects | Up to 85% | Project cost (and 75% of ARV) |
| Bridge purchase, no rehab | Up to 80% | Purchase price |
| Cash-out or rate/term refinance | Up to 65% | Value |
Rehab money works differently. Up to 100% of the rehab budget can fund in draws against completed work. That is a budget figure, not a purchase LTV.
Notice what drives the table: experience and deal type. The top tier is reserved for experienced investors. A first-time investor can qualify, but at the lower tiers. The credit floor is generally 620, with added conditions below 660. Underwriting stays asset-based: the property, the plan, and the exit.
There is no true 100% purchase program, whatever an ad says. The 100% figure applies to rehab draws only.
Why a Condo Can Land Below the Tier
A condo can land lower because the lender is lending against a share of a building, not a standalone house. The tiers above are the ceiling for the deal type. The condo review decides whether a lender will actually reach them.
The program sheet does not carve out a separate condo haircut. That does not mean every condo sizes at the top. Individual lenders set their own comfort level by property type, and condos with building-level risk often draw more conservative sizing. Treat the tier as the best case and the building as the variable.
| Factor | Why the lender cares | Likely effect |
|---|---|---|
| Pending litigation | Can trigger special assessments | Lower leverage or decline |
| Thin reserves | Raises odds of a surprise bill | Lower leverage |
| High investor ratio | Fewer owner-occupants, weaker resale | Lower leverage or decline |
| Special assessments | Cuts margin, spooks buyers | More equity required |
| Rental restrictions | Narrows the exit | Tighter sizing |
| Weak in-building comps | Shaky ARV | The 75% ARV cap binds |
Resale liquidity matters most here. A hard money lender expects to be repaid by a sale or a refinance. If buyers and refinance lenders both shy away from the building, the lender’s exit shrinks. So does the loan.
Warrantable vs. Non-Warrantable: Where Condos Split
Warrantability is judged at the building level, not the borrower level. A strong investor can own a non-warrantable unit. Credit and experience do not fix the building.
| Item | Warrantable | Non-warrantable |
|---|---|---|
| Investor concentration | Within project norms | High |
| Reserves and finances | Healthy | Weak or unclear |
| Litigation | None material | Pending or active |
| Hotel-style operation | No | Condotels fall here |
| Financing paths | Widest set of lenders | Narrower set of lenders |
“Non-warrantable” is not the same as “unfinanceable.” It limits the standard, agency-style route. Private lenders and non-QM lenders can still look at the unit. Expect tighter sizing and more questions, though.
Condotels sit in a tighter bucket still. The hotel-style operation and on-site rental program make them non-warrantable by nature. Some lenders pass on them entirely, so ask before you spend on an appraisal.
What the Lender Pulls on the Building
Most condo declines trace to the building file, not the unit. Request these before you go under contract:
- The completed HOA questionnaire (it surfaces lawsuits, assessments, and reserve levels)
- The current budget and reserve details
- The master insurance certificate
- The estoppel or dues statement for the unit
- Rental rules, including minimum lease terms and any short-term rental ban
- A recent in-building sales history
This list does double duty. The same file shows whether the exit will work. A building that blocks rentals can also block a long-term rental refinance.
Short-term rental rules can vary by city, county, HOA, and property type, so investors should confirm local rules before relying on projected rental income.
Worked Look: When the ARV Cap Does the Damage
Here is a modeled scenario with no dollar figures, just the logic. Say an investor with 2+ completed projects buys a condo. The cost-based tier allows up to 90% of project cost. Every flip tier is also capped at 75% of after-repair value.
The lender uses whichever limit is lower. On a thin-margin flip, the ARV cap usually bites first.
Now weaken the ARV. The building has few recent sales, a couple of distressed units, and a pending special assessment. The appraiser leans on conservative comps. A lower ARV pulls the 75% cap down with it. The investor needs more cash at the table, even though the experience tier never changed.
Compare a single-family flip in a neighborhood with plenty of clean sales. The cost tier and the ARV cap line up much closer, so the investor brings less cash. Same experience, different collateral story.
That is the real reason condos can feel like they carry a lower limit. The label does not change the formula. The comps and the building change the inputs.
On appraisal paperwork, practitioners commonly use Form 1073 for a condo unit’s value and Form 1007 for market rent. The program decides what is actually ordered.
Exit Risk: The Refinance Has to Work Too
A hard money condo loan runs 6 to 18 months, interest-only, with no prepayment penalty. Then you sell or refinance. A lender who sizes conservatively is partly sizing for whether that exit works.
Many investors refinance out of hard money into long-term DSCR investor loans once the property is stabilized, and Lendmire brokers that path. Dues sit inside the DSCR calculation, and that is where condos surprise people. Run it this way: a condo that looks like roughly 1.39 coverage on the loan payment alone can slide to about 0.97 once dues, taxes, and insurance are added.
Know the DSCR benchmarks before you start the bridge. 1.00 is where many select programs start, and stronger ratios open better pricing and leverage. A separate select-lender path takes coverage below 1.00, with leverage and terms adjusted. Clearing 1.00 is not the same as positive cash flow, since repairs, vacancy, and management sit outside the calculation.
For the refinance side, how to refinance hard money on a condo flip you decided to keep explains the process. For the long-term side, the complete DSCR loans guide walks through leverage, credit, and reserves.
Did the Agency Rule Change Loosen Things?
Not for hard money. Fannie Mae’s recent lender letter on condo projects retired the 50% investment-property concentration limit for established projects under full review. It also retired limited review. The presale rule still applies to new and newly converted projects: at least 50% of units must be sold or under contract to primary-residence or second-home buyers.
That is agency contrast only. Hard money and DSCR loans are not agency products, so none of this sets a hard money limit. As Michigan condominium counsel notes, lenders can keep or set their own investor-concentration rules, and many associations keep rental restrictions anyway.
One more contrast: Sandberg Phoenix reports the reserve contribution minimum is scheduled to rise from 10% to 15% of budgeted assessment income for later application dates. Associations are being pushed toward stronger reserves. A well-reserved building makes any lender’s file easier.
Investment Condos Only
Hard money loans are designed for non-owner-occupied investment properties. Because they are business-purpose investor loans, they are reviewed differently from a standard owner-occupied mortgage. If you plan to live in the condo, this program is not the fit.
The collateral is 1-to-4-unit residential property. A condo unit qualifies as one unit. Land, commercial, and hospitality properties are not on the sheet. And co-ops? They are corporate shares, not deeded real estate, so ask a lender up front whether it will touch one.
How to Raise Your Effective Limit
You cannot argue a lender above its tier. You can remove the reasons for sizing below it.
1. Pick the cleaner building. Low investor ratio, no lawsuits, healthy reserves.
2. Bring stronger comps. Recent in-building sales protect the ARV.
3. Count your completed projects. The 85%, 90%, and 93% tiers turn on documented experience.
4. Put more cash in. A bigger down payment trims the loan and helps the later DSCR. It never erases leverage caps, credit floors, or reserve rules.
5. Read the rental rules first. A blocked rental can sink the exit.
6. Check the exit coverage early. Dues and all, before the bridge closes.
The strongest files clear both tests: enough equity and enough rental coverage.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I get a hard money loan on a condo?
Yes, when it is a non-owner-occupied investment unit. The program covers 1-to-4-unit residential property, and a condo unit counts as one unit. Approval depends on the building, the plan, the exit, and your experience, and nothing is a commitment to lend.
What is the maximum a hard money lender will lend on a condo?
There is no single number. Flip loans run up to 85% to 93% of project cost by experience tier, capped at 75% of after-repair value. Bridge purchases are sized as a share of project cost, and refinances run up to 65% of value. A weak building can pull a lender below those tiers.
Do HOA dues affect the loan?
They affect the exit more than the bridge itself. Dues count in the DSCR calculation when you refinance into long-term financing. A deal that clears comfortably on the mortgage payment alone can fall near or below 1.00 once dues, taxes, and insurance are included. Sub-1.00 paths exist through select lenders, with leverage and terms adjusted.
What makes a condo non-warrantable?
Building-level issues cause it: heavy investor ownership, weak reserves or finances, active litigation, or a hotel-style operation. It is about the project, not your credit. A non-warrantable unit can still be financed by private and non-QM lenders, usually with tighter sizing.
Is the loan limit different for an experienced investor?
Yes. Experience moves the tier more than the property label does. The top flip tier is reserved for investors with 5+ completed projects, while first-time investors qualify at the lower tiers.
If you are buying, rehabbing or refinancing an investment property on a short timeline and want to see how the numbers work, Lendmire can help you compare hard money options based on the project, the exit plan, leverage, and your goals. Lendmire arranges these loans through select lenders in its wholesale network across 41 markets, including Washington, D.C. Request a quote and ask about the building file before you go under contract.
Condo deals are won or lost in the association’s paperwork, so read that file before you read the price.
About Lendmire
Lendmire is a non-QM mortgage brokerage (NMLS# 2371349) arranging DSCR investor loans in 41 markets, including Washington, D.C. DSCR eligibility is generally reviewed around property-level rental income rather than personal income, subject to lender and program guidelines, a fit for self-employed investors and LLC-owned portfolios. Lendmire was recognized as a Scotsman Guide Top Mortgage Workplace in 2025 and 2026.
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Informational only. Not a Loan Estimate, approval, or commitment to lend. Program availability and eligibility are subject to lender guidelines, credit approval, property review, and underwriting.
References
1. Fannie Mae — lender letter on condo project eligibility
2. Michigan Community Association Law Blog — Fannie Mae condominium lending guidelines
3. Sandberg Phoenix — Fannie Mae updates condominium eligibility requirements
This article is part of Lendmire’s hard money loan program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: Seasoning Rules for a Two-Step DSCR Cash-Out After Hard Money · Hard Money Loan Requirements to Buy Out a Land Contract · Can a Small Walk-Up Condo in HOA Litigation Get a DSCR Loan?
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Legal disclosures. Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a state-licensed mortgage brokerage that arranges financing through wholesale lender relationships. Lendmire is not a direct lender, depository institution, or registered financial advisor. The discussion above is general informational content about real estate financing — it is not financial, legal, or tax advice, and readers should consult licensed professionals for guidance on their individual circumstances. Loan inquiries are subject to lender underwriting; this article does not represent a commitment to lend. Loan terms, rates, and qualification standards vary by borrower, property, and state, and are subject to change at any time. Equal Housing Opportunity. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.