The Quick Read: The condo questionnaire is a form your HOA or its management company fills out, not you. The lender uses it to judge the building’s finances and condition before releasing your equity. It applies to a cash-out refinance, not just a purchase. A strong borrower can still get stuck if the building’s answers look weak.
Key Takeaways
- The HOA or management company completes the questionnaire. You request it, track it, and review the answers.
- On a jumbo loan, the lender sets its own project rules, usually modeled on agency standards.
- The form covers reserves, special assessments, litigation, rentals, commercial space, and building safety.
- Your credit and equity are one gate. The building is a separate gate.
- Start early. A slow HOA is the most common source of delay on condo files.
Jumbo cash-out estimate
Enter the value, the balance, and the cash wanted; choose the occupancy and the structure; the lanes, the payment, and the reserves follow.
Editable benchmark: 7.40% as of October 15, 2026 · Freddie Mac 30-year average via FRED®. A conventional market reference, not a jumbo cash-out refinance quote.
Illustrative starting assumptions: a $2,000,000 home value in the jumbo range, a $1,000,000 current balance, a principal residence on a thirty-year fixed structure at the current Freddie Mac conforming benchmark, and property taxes and insurance estimated at typical national rates. Every field is editable.
Illustrative estimate only — not a Loan Estimate, approval, quote, or commitment to lend. The rate field carries the weekly Freddie Mac thirty-year conforming benchmark, a market reference and not a jumbo cash-out refinance quote; a jumbo loan is priced by the lender at lock. The lanes shown are the wholesale cash-out lanes behind this page as of the snapshot date; the calculator reads each lane’s leverage, loan maximum by occupancy, cash-in-hand cap, and reserves as the lane table states them, and a Lendmire loan officer confirms the lane on the file. The cash available is the loan the lane allows less the balances paid off, before closing costs, which are not included; on most lanes a jumbo cash-out begins one dollar above the conforming limit for the county, and two lanes start at a stated dollar floor instead. The HELOC line is the line program’s combined loan-to-value ceiling applied to the same value and balance. Taxes and insurance are editable estimates. Licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages.
Key Terms Defined
Jumbo loan: A mortgage that begins one dollar above the county’s conforming limit. That limit changes yearly, so check your county’s current number.
Condo questionnaire: A form about the building, completed by the HOA or its manager, that the lender reviews alongside your appraisal and finances.
Project review: The lender’s check of the building itself: its budget, reserves, insurance, lawsuits, and unit mix.
Warrantable condo: A building that meets the standards the large government-backed mortgage buyers set. Non-warrantable means it misses at least one.
Special assessment: A one-time charge the HOA bills owners, often to pay for major repairs.
Reserves (building-level): Money the HOA sets aside for future repairs. These are separate from your own cash reserves, which the lender measures in months of payments.
Critical repair: A fix tied to safety, soundness, or habitability. Unfinished critical repairs can block a loan.
What the Questionnaire Is, and Why Jumbo Cash-Out Files Get It
On a condo, you are not the only collateral. The building is too. If the HOA runs out of money or faces a big lawsuit, your unit’s value and your loan’s safety both take a hit.
That is why a condo refinance usually includes the questionnaire. The form asks about the association’s money, its rules, and its repairs. The HOA or its management company answers. You do not.
Jumbo files lean on this harder. A jumbo loan is not sold to the large government-backed buyers, so the lender or its investor writes the rulebook. Most start from the standard agency form and layer their own rules on top. Some use their own questionnaire. One building can look fine to one lender and too thin to another.
Cash-out adds a second layer. You are asking the lender to hand you equity, so they care more about whether the building holds its value. Leverage on a cash-out sits lower than on a purchase. A cash cap applies on two of the larger lanes. Lendmire’s jumbo cash-out refinance program runs through wholesale lenders, and each one applies its own project review.
Whether the home is your primary residence, a second home, or an investment property changes the leverage. Your lender will tell you which applies to your file.
What the Form Asks, by Topic
The form is built around one question: is this building financially stable, well maintained, and easy to resell? Freddie Mac’s questionnaire form and its building-safety addendum show the standard version. Jumbo lenders often add questions of their own.
| Topic | What it asks | Why the lender cares | Green vs. red flag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reserves | Is there a reserve study? Is it funded? | Weak reserves mean surprise bills | Funded study vs. none |
| Special assessments | Any current or planned? | They raise your housing cost | None vs. large, unfunded |
| Inspection and safety | Findings? Repairs done? | Safety issues can make a project ineligible | Complete vs. open items |
| Deferred maintenance | Is there a funding plan? | Delayed repairs get more expensive | Scheduled vs. ignored |
| Litigation | Any pending suits? | Suits can drain funds and cloud value | None vs. active, large |
| Delinquent dues | What share of owners are behind? | Unpaid dues starve the budget | Low vs. high |
| Rentals and use | Hotel use? Rental pooling? Business income? | Transient use raises risk | Residential vs. resort-style |
| Owner mix | Owner-occupied vs. investor share? | Heavy investor mix can hurt stability | Balanced vs. concentrated |
| Insurance | Master policy coverage? | Gaps leave owners exposed | Adequate vs. gaps |
The safety addendum is the newer part. It asks about the last building inspection, whether repairs are finished, and whether a funding plan exists for deferred work. The main form also asks whether a reserve study was done in the past three years, per Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s joint questionnaire.
One more point. HOA documents alone do not replace the form. Lenders want the completed questionnaire, and they may also ask for the budget, bylaws, and meeting minutes.
Step by Step for a First-Timer
1. Confirm the project review is needed. Ask your loan officer early. On a condo refinance, assume yes.
2. Find the right contact. That is usually the management company. A self-managed building may route it through the board.
3. Request the form. Send the lender’s questionnaire, your unit address, and the lender’s contact. Management companies often charge a fee for completing it.
4. Gather the association documents. Budget, reserve study if one exists, insurance certificate, and recent minutes.
5. Track it. Follow up on a schedule. Do not wait for the HOA to call you.
6. Read the answers before the lender does. Flag anything in the table above that looks like a red flag.
7. Answer follow-up questions. Lenders often ask for clarifications, especially on repairs and assessments.
Here is who does what:
| Person | Job |
|---|---|
| You | Request, follow up, review answers |
| Management company | Complete and return the form |
| Lender | Review the project against its rules |
| Broker | Match your building to a lender whose rules fit |
Timing is the honest weak spot. The HOA controls it, not you. A slow or unresponsive manager can hold the whole file. A fixed schedule is not something anyone can promise, so start before you need the loan.
A Worked Example: One Yellow Flag
Picture a first-time refinancer in a mid-size condo building. Their income and credit are solid, and they want cash out for a renovation.
The questionnaire comes back clean on litigation, insurance, and delinquencies. One item stands out: the building reports a planned special assessment for exterior repairs, with funding only partly in place.
That is a yellow flag, not a stop sign. The lender asks for the engineer’s report and the board’s funding plan. Meanwhile, the borrower asks the manager for the assessment schedule, so they know what it adds to their housing cost.
Three outcomes are possible. The plan may satisfy the lender. The lender may ask for lower leverage or more reserves. Or the lender may decline that building, and the broker looks for another lender with different project rules. Which one happens depends on the lender, the project, and the full file. Nothing here is a commitment to lend.
Borrower File vs. Building File
Both have to pass. Passing one does not offset failing the other.
On your side, the wholesale jumbo lanes Lendmire places files with start at a 660 decision score on the headline lane. Leverage reaches 90% on that lane, and several lanes reach 89.99% CLTV while the rest stop at 80%. Loans go up to $5,000,000 on the largest lanes. The debt-to-income ceiling is 50% on the fixed lanes, 45% on the adjustable lane, and 43% on the interest-only lane. Reserves are counted in months of the full payment and rise with the loan amount. Larger loans can also require two appraisals. Each figure is subject to lender guidelines and full file review.
On the building’s side, equity does not buy a lighter review. Fannie Mae’s Lender Letter LL-2026-03 retired its Limited Review path, which used to ease project checks on lower-leverage loans. That is an agency change, not a jumbo rule. It does show where the market is heading: more scrutiny of the building, not less. If a second opinion on value matters for your file, Lendmire’s piece Does a Second Appraisal Help a First Jumbo Cash-Out? covers when it comes into play.
If the Building Doesn’t Pass
A failed questionnaire is not always the end. You have options.
Fix what is fixable. Open repairs, a missing reserve study, or an outdated insurance certificate can sometimes be resolved. Ask the board what is in progress.
Try a lender with a different rulebook. Agency standards are a floor, and individual lenders may be stricter or looser. Some programs take non-warrantable condos. Two of the wholesale lanes Lendmire works with do. Lendmire’s piece on how a super jumbo cash-out works on a non-warrantable condo walks through that path.
Know what will not work. Agency waivers are narrow. Under Fannie Mae’s waiver of project review, the project cannot be marked “Unavailable” in the agency’s system. One waiver covers a limited cash-out refinance of a loan Fannie Mae already owns. A jumbo cash-out is not that case.
Wait. If a repair or assessment resolves in a few months, reapplying later may produce a different answer.
Common First-Timer Mistakes
- Treating the questionnaire as a borrower form. The HOA completes it.
- Assuming strong equity overrides a weak building. It does not.
- Starting too late. The HOA sets the pace, not you.
- Skipping a read of the answers. You can catch a problem before the lender does.
- Applying with one lender only. Project rules vary, so one decline is not a final verdict on the building.
Next Step
If you are weighing a cash-out refinance against keeping the loan you have, Lendmire can help you compare the programs and the equity each one reaches. Lendmire is a mortgage broker. It arranges loans through wholesale lenders and does not lend itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a cash-out refinance on a condo need a questionnaire?
Usually, yes. Lenders review the building on a refinance just as they do on a purchase. The cash-out adds scrutiny because you are drawing equity from the property. Exceptions are narrow and generally do not apply to jumbo cash-out loans.
Who fills out the questionnaire, and does it cost anything?
The HOA or its management company completes it. Management companies often charge a fee, and the amount varies. Ask for the fee up front so it does not surprise you.
How long does the questionnaire take?
It depends on the HOA. A responsive manager returns it promptly. A slow one can hold up the file. Start before you need the loan, and follow up on a schedule.
Does strong credit offset a weak building?
No. Your file and the building’s file are separate gates. A high score helps your side. It does not fix a building with open critical repairs or thin reserves.
Do short-term rentals in the building change the questionnaire?
Yes. The form screens for hotel or resort activity and rental pooling. Buildings with heavy transient use get tighter treatment, and some lenders decline them. If you plan to rent your own unit, occupancy type also changes the leverage on your loan.
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.
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References
1. Freddie Mac’s questionnaire form
2. Freddie Mac, Form 476A Building-Safety Addendum
3. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Condominium Project Questionnaire (Form 1076/476)
4. Fannie Mae, Lender Letter LL-2026-03
5. Fannie Mae Selling Guide, Waiver of Project Review
This article is part of Lendmire’s Jumbo Loans series — every loan program’s qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the loan options page.
Related reading: Can a Trust With a Co-Trustee Get a Jumbo Cash-Out? · Should You Renovate With a Jumbo Cash-Out If Your First Is Worth Keeping? · How to Compare Jumbo Cash-Out Programs When Your First Mortgage Is Low
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.