The Quick Read: A tower condo appraisal package is two sets of evidence handed over together: proof of what the unit is worth, and proof of what it rents for, backed by building-level papers that show the tower itself is healthy. Build the building packet first, brief every appraiser with identical unit facts, and reconcile the reports before the lender’s review begins. Above $2,000,000, two appraisals apply, so consistency matters more than it does on a smaller file.
- The package has three layers: the unit, the building, and the rent.
- Two appraisals apply above $2,000,000, and the lower value commonly sizes the loan.
- Same-tower sales are the strongest comparables; view and floor adjustments need matched-pair support.
- A building questionnaire collects facts. It is not an approval.
- Every figure here is subject to underwriting and is not a commitment to lend.
DSCR 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. The loan is reviewed primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. That does not make the file light. On a luxury tower unit, the collateral papers are the file.
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What Goes Into a Tower Condo Appraisal Package?
Three layers go in: the unit valuation, the rent evidence, and the building documents. The appraiser produces the first two. You assemble the third, and it should be ready before anyone is engaged.
The unit valuation. The standard report for a condo unit is Form 1073, the Individual Condominium Unit Appraisal Report, listed on Fannie Mae’s forms page. The Fannie Mae Selling Guide describes it as the form for one-unit properties in condo projects, based on interior and exterior inspection. The form is named only so you recognize it. DSCR programs set their own requirements.
The rent evidence. Form 1007, the Single-Family Comparable Rent Schedule, is the traditional rent form. So ask the lender which rent format it expects before the appraiser is engaged.
The building documents. Condo project questionnaires collect building-level facts. They cover developer control, ownership concentration, delinquencies, litigation, commercial space, insurance, deferred maintenance and reserves, according to The HOA Guide. The same source lists a board-side checklist: the budget, a reserve study, master and fidelity policy declarations, and an aged delinquency report. Meeting minutes round out the set.
Key Terms Defined
Super jumbo: a non-QM industry label for very large loan balances. No regulator defines it, and each program draws the line in its own place. Across the programs Lendmire places files with, the standard program stops at $3,000,000 and the larger ladder carries qualified investors past it.
Tower condo: a unit in a high-rise building, where floor, line, and view drive value differences within the same project.
Appraisal package: the unit report, the rent evidence, and the building papers that support them.
Warrantable: a building that meets agency project standards. Non-warrantable buildings fail one or more of those tests, and many non-QM programs borrow the same triggers.
Desk review: a second-look review of an appraisal done from the file, without a site visit.
Matched pair: two near-identical sales that differ mainly by one feature, such as view, used to support an adjustment.
Why Do Towers and Big Balances Change the Appraisal?
Jumbo-priced homes are hard to price from comparables, and towers add variables that a house never has. Two units in the same building can differ by floor, direction, view, layout and upgrades, and those differences can be worth a lot.
Across the wholesale network, size sets the appraisal count. A single appraisal covers files up to $2,000,000. Above that, two independent appraisals apply, and a desk review often sits on top. The jump is abrupt. A file at $1,900,000 carries one report. A file at $2,100,000 carries two, and the lower value commonly sizes the loan.
Appraisal risk is the usual derailer on large-balance files, more often than credit or income. A tower multiplies that risk, because the building itself is part of the collateral.
How Do You Build the Package, Step by Step?
Work in this order. Each step feeds the next.
1. Build the building packet first. Gather the questionnaire, current budget, master insurance certificate, reserve study, delinquency report and recent meeting minutes. Problems at the project level should surface before an appraiser is engaged, not after. A questionnaire is a fact-gathering tool. It is judged under the program selected, and it is not an approval.
2. Confirm the rent format. Ask which rent form or appraisal format the lender expects. Do this before ordering.
3. Brief each appraiser with identical unit facts. Give both the same line, floor, view direction, square footage, upgrades, parking and storage rights, and HOA dues. Divergence is common enough without feeding it inconsistent inputs.
4. Supply comp support. The best evidence is a sale in the same tower, because it removes project variables. What remains are floor, view and upgrades. Offer recent same-building sales to both appraisers, and flag any adjacent luxury towers you consider defensible.
5. Carry rent evidence on each report. On two-appraisal files, each appraisal carries its own rent schedule. The rent the appraiser supports matters nearly as much as the sales value.
6. Reconcile before the desk review. Check that the two reports agree on facts: unit line, floor, view, square footage, dues and any assessments. Fix gaps now, because the lender’s review will find them anyway.
7. Refresh stale items. Building status can change between application and closing. A new assessment, a lawsuit or a shift in investor concentration can alter how the building is treated, so refresh the questionnaire if time passes.
How Should You Support Comparable Sales in a Tower?
Start in the same building, then widen only as needed. Homebuyer.com’s summary of condo appraisal guidance notes that internal comps remove project variables, and that similar units in similar projects matter more than matching square footage. It is a contrast to agency practice and does not govern DSCR files.
Practitioner commentary on luxury high-rises, such as this Subdivisions piece on waterfront tower pricing, says to compare line, floor, direction, exposure, view, layout and size. It also argues that three strong comps can beat fifteen that need big assumptions. Fewer, cleaner comps survive review better.
View and floor adjustments need matched pairs. An appraiser-side analysis of view premiums at a Dallas tower describes the strongest support as two nearly identical sales that differ mainly by view. When pairs are thin, appraisers group sales by view quality or widen the time frame or area. Big adjustments need big support, and photos help.
Do not assume a floor premium. A unit ten floors up should not get a premium without evidence that buyers paid it. View premiums are empirical. A Hong Kong study estimated roughly 11% for partial views and 22% for full views. It is not a U.S. benchmark, and nobody should apply it to a U.S. tower. It only shows that view quality is priced.
A comp-support memo for each appraiser can be a short outline:
- The subject’s line, floor, direction and view.
- Recent same-building sales, with differences noted.
- Any matched pairs that isolate view or floor.
- Adjacent towers you consider comparable, and why.
- Upgrades, parking and storage rights.
What Breaks the General Rule?
Several tower situations change the playbook.
Thin comp pools. Unique floor plans in luxury towers may have few recent sales. Appraisers then widen the time frame or draw from nearby luxury towers, which raises the burden of support. Prepare the memo early.
Developer pricing versus resale. New-construction pricing steps up by floor, but resale tiers can be repriced. Do not treat developer floor premiums as resale evidence.
Non-warrantable buildings. Warrantability is an agency concept, but non-QM programs often borrow its triggers: single-entity concentration, litigation, heavy commercial space, weak reserves or recent special assessments. A non-warrantable tower may still work when the story is documented and risk is offset by reserves or conservative leverage. In the wholesale network, non-warrantable condos are typically reviewed to 75% leverage and $1,500,000, subject to underwriting. Lendmire’s piece on warrantable condo leverage on a super jumbo bank statement loan covers that side in detail.
Condo-hotels. A condotel sits outside agency lending because of the building and adds a rental-program or management agreement to the file. Through select wholesale programs, condotels typically reach 75% on a purchase and 65% on a refinance, up to $1,500,000, with $250,000 cash-in-hand required, subject to underwriting.
Short-term rentals. These qualify on documented operating history at a discount to gross rent, with coverage of 1.00 or higher and loan amounts to $2,000,000. Municipal permission must be documented for the specific property. 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.
Agency rules in flux. Agency condo standards are being revised. Treat them as contrast only, never as a DSCR rule.
DSCR vs. conventional financing
There are two common ways to finance an investment property, and they qualify you differently — here’s how investors weigh them.
Why investors choose it
- Qualifies on the property’s rental income — no personal tax returns, W-2s, or pay stubs needed to document income.
- No personal debt-to-income ceiling to clear, so existing mortgages and obligations don’t cap your borrowing the same way.
- Can be closed in an LLC, keeping the property inside a business entity.
- Built for scaling — not held to the limit on number of financed properties that conventional financing applies.
- Underwriting centers on the deal: generally qualifies when the rent covers the payment, a 1.00x coverage ratio being a common baseline (confirmed in underwriting).
- Designed specifically for investment property, including long-term and, where the program allows, short-term rentals.
Where it’s strong
- Often the lowest ongoing financing cost for a buyer who fully qualifies on personal income — a fit for a first property or a cost-first purchase.
Trade-offs for investors
- Requires full personal income documentation and must fit within a debt-to-income limit — salary, existing debts, and other mortgages all count.
- Typically held in your personal name rather than a business entity.
- Caps how many financed properties you can carry, which can become a ceiling as a portfolio grows.
- Evaluates you as a borrower as much as the property, which usually means more paperwork.
How investors usually choose: a first or single property often optimizes for the lowest financing cost; portfolio builders often optimize for leverage, vesting in an LLC, and scaling past conventional caps. The right answer depends on your goals, the property, and current guidelines — both paths run through select lenders in Lendmire’s wholesale network, with eligibility and terms confirmed in underwriting.
How Do Two Appraisals Interact?
The lower value commonly governs, so one conservative report resets every cap in the file. Run the logic on a hypothetical purchase near $2,100,000. Leverage at that size typically tops out at 75% on a purchase through select programs, subject to underwriting. If one appraisal comes in a few percent under contract, the loan cap falls with it, and the investor funds the gap in cash.
Divergence usually comes from view and floor adjustments, since two appraisers can weigh the same premium differently. That is why identical briefing matters. Hand both the same-building sales and the same matched pairs.
On a luxury rental, the value-based leverage ceiling often binds before the rent-based limit does. That flips a common assumption. Investors tend to worry about coverage, but a modest value miss moves the entire loan.
How Do HOA Dues Affect Coverage?
Dues are part of the monthly obligation, so high tower dues pull the coverage number down. Coverage is monthly rent divided by the full monthly debt service, which includes principal, interest, taxes, insurance and any HOA dues. A tower with heavy dues and amenity costs needs more rent to clear the same ratio as a lower-dues building.
Picture a unit that clears roughly 1.15x with modest dues. Add a special assessment or a dues increase, and the same rent can land in sub-1.00 territory. Coverage of 1.00 earns full leverage. From 0.75 to 0.99, select programs offer a real path to $2,000,000 at reduced leverage, where LTV and terms adjust, subject to underwriting. Interest-only structures, which run 120 months on 30- and 40-year terms to a 75% maximum, qualify on interest, taxes and insurance, and can lift coverage. Check the dues figure on both appraisals, because an error there moves the ratio.
Rent support is its own task in towers, since in-building lease comps can be scarce. Ask the appraiser to draw from comparable luxury buildings and document the basis. A soft rent conclusion can shrink the loan even when value holds.
What Building Red Flags Should You Pre-Empt?
| Building issue | Why it matters | What to include |
|---|---|---|
| Special assessment | Raises dues, may signal deferred work | Board notice, scope, payoff plan |
| Litigation | Can change project treatment | Case summary, insurer response |
| Investor concentration | Trips non-warrantable triggers | Ownership breakdown from questionnaire |
| Thin reserves | Signals repair risk | Reserve study, budget line items |
| Heavy commercial space | Common non-warrantable trigger | Square-footage split, operations summary |
| Hotel-like operation | Adds rental-program review | Management agreement, program terms |
Explain a flag in a short cover note rather than hoping nobody notices. Lenders reward a documented story more than a clean-looking gap.
What Should You Check When the Reports Arrive?
Audit both reports against your own facts. Look for these items:
- The unit line, floor, view direction and square footage match your brief.
- Dues and assessments are stated correctly, since HOA fee adjustments are standard.
- Same-building sales were considered, and exclusions are explained.
- Large view or floor adjustments are supported by pairs or photos.
- The rent conclusion rests on comparable rentals, not on a single outlier.
If an error is objective, such as wrong square footage or a missed same-tower sale, request a correction with supporting evidence. A disagreement over opinion is harder to win. Objective support is what moves a report.
What Does the Investor Decision Look Like?
Assemble the building packet before you go under contract. Ask which rent format the lender expects. Test the view premium baked into the contract price against same-tower, matched-pair evidence. Then size the deal on the lower of two possible values, not the higher.
Know the ladder, too. Across the network, leverage on a purchase typically steps down from 80% to $1,000,000, to 75% to $3,000,000, to 65% to $4,000,000, and 60% beyond that on review case by case, with no cash-out above $3,000,000. All of it is subject to underwriting.
For a trust or entity-held unit, Lendmire’s explainer on whether a trust-held condo can qualify for a super jumbo DSCR loan covers vesting. For the full program picture, see the complete DSCR loans guide. Tax treatment can depend on how the funds are used and how the property is held; investors should keep clear records and speak with a qualified tax professional before relying on any deduction.
Frequently Asked Questions
What goes in the package?
Unit facts, rent evidence and building papers. That means the questionnaire, budget, reserve study, master insurance, delinquency report and meeting minutes, plus a same-tower comp memo and the dues figure. Entity documents and insurance round it out.
Do the building’s finances matter on a DSCR file?
Yes. The loan is reviewed primarily on property-level rental income, but project facts such as reserves, litigation and delinquencies still need documentation. DSCR does not mean a light file on a tower.
Can the two appraised values differ?
They often do, usually on view and floor adjustments. Above $2,000,000 the lower value commonly sizes the loan, so brief both appraisers with identical facts and the same-building sales.
What if the building has few recent sales?
Appraisers may widen the time frame or use nearby luxury towers, which raises the support burden. Give them a comp memo and any matched pairs early, so the adjustments rest on evidence.
How do high dues affect coverage?
Dues sit in the monthly obligation, so higher dues lower the coverage number at the same rent. Confirm dues and any assessments on both reports, because a wrong figure can move the ratio.
Next Step
If you are buying or refinancing a high-balance rental property and want to see how the numbers work, Lendmire can help you compare super jumbo DSCR loan options based on the property income, the loan balance, credit profile, leverage, and investor goals. Reach the brokerage at 828-256-2183. Lendmire is a broker arranging financing through select lenders in its wholesale network across 41 markets, including Washington, D.C. Nothing here is a commitment to lend.
Self-employed borrowers can compare both super jumbo programs on Lendmire’s self-employed mortgages page.
About Lendmire
Lendmire, NMLS# 2371349, is a non-QM mortgage broker serving real estate investors in 41 markets, including Washington, D.C., through DSCR investor loan programs. Qualification is generally reviewed around the subject property’s rental income, not the borrower’s W-2 history, a practical fit for LLC-titled portfolios and self-employed investors, subject to program terms. All scenarios remain subject to lender review and program guidelines. Lendmire is a two-time Scotsman Guide Top Mortgage Workplace honoree (2025, 2026).
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References
1. Fannie Mae Selling & Servicing Guide Forms
2. Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-1.2-01
3. The HOA Guide: Fannie Mae condo questionnaire
4. Homebuyer.com condo appraisal guidance
5. Subdivisions blog, luxury high-rise pricing
6. Kevin Sells Dallas, view premiums
7. Buildings (MDPI) view premium study
This article is part of Lendmire’s super jumbo DSCR loan program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: Can You Cash Out a Condotel With a Super Jumbo DSCR Loan? · How Much a Super Jumbo DSCR Cash-Out Releases on Acreage · How to Cash Out a Super Jumbo DSCR Loan on Acreage Property
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
- Mortgage Loan Originator · NMLS# 1129696 · Verify on NMLS Consumer Access
- North Carolina Real Estate Broker · License# 343312 · Verify on NCREC
- North Carolina Insurance Producer · License# 19053198 · Property, Casualty, Life, Health · Verify on NAIC SBS
- Lendmire LLC · Firm NMLS# 2371349 · Verify firm licensure
Disclosure information. Lendmire is a state-licensed mortgage brokerage under NMLS# 2371349. Lendmire is not a depository institution, direct lender, or financial advisor — all loans referenced are placed through wholesale lender partners and are subject to each lender's underwriting standards. This article is provided for general informational purposes and is not a commitment to lend, nor does it constitute financial, legal, or tax advice. Loan programs, terms, rates, and qualification standards change without notice and depend on borrower profile, property type, and the state in which the subject property is located. Equal Housing Opportunity provider. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.