For community association managers
The August 3 condo lending change, on one page
Informational only, current as of August 2026, and not legal advice. If you only have two minutes, the table of dates near the bottom is the part to keep.
What changed
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac retired their light-touch condo review paths, Limited Review and Streamlined Review, for all mortgage applications dated on or after August 3, 2026 (Fannie Lender Letter LL-2026-03 and Freddie Bulletin 2026-C, both issued March 18, 2026).
Unless a loan qualifies for a narrow waiver, meaning detached units, projects of 10 or fewer units outside master associations, and certain refinances, every conventional condo loan in an 11 or more unit building now goes through Full Review.
What Full Review demands from the association, every time
- The complete project questionnaire
- Including the safety addendum added after Surfside: inspections, deferred maintenance, evacuation orders.
- The budget, with the replacement reserve line visible
- At least 10% of assessment income today, and 15% for applications dated on or after January 4, 2027. The alternative is a reserve study under three years old, funded at its highest recommended level.
- Delinquency counted correctly
- Units 60 or more days past due, including special assessments, against a 15% ceiling. Counted in units, never in dollars.
- Insurance answered with specifics
- Carriers and ratings, evidence of 100% replacement cost, and every deductible stated exactly. Since July 1, 2026 per-unit deductibles are capped at $50,000.
- Litigation and special assessments disclosed and classified
- And consistent with the minutes and any engineer's report.
Why sloppy answers now cost real money
Lenders certify every project in Fannie's Condo Project Manager system. A project marked "Unavailable" is ineligible, with no lender override, and over five thousand condo projects nationally already carry ineligible status.
Wrong delinquency math, vague insurance answers, or a special assessment described in a way the minutes contradict no longer just delay one closing. They can mark the building, and every future sale inherits the problem.
The dates on one line
| July 1, 2026 | August 3, 2026 | January 4, 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 per-unit deductible cap | Full Review on every conventional condo loan, 11 or more units | Reserve floor rises to 15% |
What good handling looks like
Every answer sourced to a document and dated. Arithmetic shown, not asserted. Litigation disclosed and then classified, never a bare yes or no. Insurance transcribed from the declarations page, never summarized.
That standard is achievable in-house with care. It is also what a production desk does under your brand: documents in, a signed-ready package back in 24 to 48 business hours, your manager reviews and signs, your fee stays yours.
Try it on one building
The first package is free. Send one community's documents and judge the work on your own paperwork.
Check a building against the new thresholds
Six of the tests that decide whether a questionnaire comes back, run on your own figures in your own browser. Free, no signup, and nothing is sent anywhere.