FHA Condo Approval: It Still Matters

Andrew Fortin

On a condo board? One of your new year’s resolutions should be to look at obtaining Federal Housing Administration (FHA) approval for your condominium association. FHA approval helps ensure that units for sale in your building are marketable to the widest range of borrowers.

The FHA is one of the only organizations that has established approval criteria for condominiums that looks at the association's key operational fundamentals. FHA approval is seen as a sign of a well-run association even for buyers not using FHA financing. Because the FHA requires the entire association to be approved prior to any individual FHA-backed mortgage being issued, it is a good idea to have the approval in place prior to any FHA buyer coming to the table.

FHA approval typically takes a couple of months to complete. It requires working with a partner, like Associa’s FHA Assist, to gather required information on budgets, insurance, owner-occupancy levels, reserves, assessment delinquencies and other details. That information is then assembled, summarized and submitted to the FHA for approval. Once approved, the entire association is covered for FHA-backed mortgages for two-years.

One area where boards get stuck is remembering that since 2009, the burden of FHA approval has been on the association. Prior to 2009, the buyer would work with their lending agent and the FHA directly to get approval. Now, if the association is not previously approved and a buyer requests a FHA-backed mortgage, the time-frame for approval usually means a lost sale and an angry homeowner.

Obtaining FHA approval can be accomplished by using an approval specialist. Associa offers this service to our condominium clients through our FHA Assist team. We’ll work with your local manager and association to assemble the documents, fill out the proper forms, file the application with the FHA, and track its progress. So why not start the year off knowing that the units in your building are marketable to the largest possible number of buyers? Let us help you get FHA approved today.

Want more information?

Read our free whitepaper, "A Guide to Getting Your Condo Association FHA Approval" now!

Ready to start the process?
If you are interested in learning more about Associa FHA Assist, please contact Natalie Ayers at Nayers@associaionline.com.