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Looking for mortgage on California condo?

Posted on: 24th Apr, 2007 05:02 am
I am looking for a condo in California and the mortgage lender I met a few days back tells me that until and unless 51% of the condo units are occupied by the owner of the condo itself, he will not offer me any loan. Is it a rule over there? Do all lenders have such a criteria?
I think it is necessary for the condo to be entirely full otherwise it will have no market value as such and will not attract potential buyers.
Posted on: 24th Apr, 2007 05:09 am
Miranda, you need to shop with a few more lenders as all lenders do not ask for such criterion to be met before they will provide a mortgage.

Miller
Posted on: 24th Apr, 2007 01:30 pm
I would consider giving the financing if the condominium is at least 25% occupied. It really depends on which program we decide to go with. Give me a shout at your earliest opportunity and we can go over some scenarios together to find you a program that would be the best fit for you.

My name is Will. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance.
Posted on: 24th Apr, 2007 11:30 pm
Hi Miranda and Will,

Welcome to our community forums.

Miranda, as far as I know, there isn't any such rule that the condo has to be owner-occupied to a certain percentage. Different lenders have different criteria of offering loans for a condo. The occupancy of such condos will also vary from one lender to another. Some lenders will appreciate an 80% owner-occupied condo while others may approve loans having occupancy below the said percentage.

Regards,
Jessica.
Posted on: 25th Apr, 2007 04:54 am
You have different issues if looking for an FHA loan or if it is a conventional loan you are considering. Either way, the FHA or Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac have requirements on condominium developments before they will be insurable by FHA or conform to Fannie/Freddie guidelines. % occupancy is one of several requirements.

Typically when buying early in a condominium you have less financing options and you often have to look at a bank like Wells Fargo or Bank of America to do your loan. The reason is they can keep your loan within the bank until the complex meets the requirements. The small mortgage bankers and brokers can't do this obviously.

Usually the condo developer has suggested lenders with banks who will do the early purchases in the development. I know Bank of America will do unit #1 in a complex in most cases.
Posted on: 26th Apr, 2007 12:20 pm
Thanks guys. But does it make any diffrence in going with a banker or a broker?
Posted on: 27th Apr, 2007 05:09 am
It does not make much of a difference but you need to check the rate offered. One thing is that broker can give you more options to select from.
Posted on: 27th Apr, 2007 11:12 am
man i have the same problem. i can't find no 1 to do my loan the complex is only 34% o/o and the rest are rentals. most of the lenders we have tlkd to want 50% and up.
Posted on: 08th Jun, 2007 10:39 am
"man i have the same problem. i can't find no 1 to do my loan the complex is only 34% o/o and the rest are rentals. most of the lenders we have tlkd to want 50% and up."

Some lenders do offer to provide the loan even with 25% occupancy. Guess you need to search a bit more and hopefully you will be able to locate lenders who are willing.

One to start with can be Will Addo of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, who suggested in his previous post that it could be possible depending on specific situation and program selected. You can give it a try by contacting him to start with.

Miller
Posted on: 08th Jun, 2007 05:13 pm
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