HUD No. 19-121
HUD Public Affairs
(202) 708-0685 FOR RELEASE
Wednesday
August 14, 2019
FHA ISSUES NEW CONDOMINIUM APPROVAL RULE

Comprehensive policy revisions include the ability to approve individual units in nonapproved condo projects

In an effort to promote affordable and sustainable homeownership, especially among credit-worthy first-time buyers, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) today published a long-awaited final regulation, and policy implementation guidance, which establish a new condominium approval process.

Designed to be flexible and responsive to market conditions, FHA’s new condo rule and the new Condominium Project Approval section of the Single-Family Housing Policy Handbook, provide a comprehensive revision to FHA condominium project approval policy. In particular, the new policy will allow certain individual condominium units to be eligible for FHA mortgage insurance even if the condominium project is not FHA approved. The polices become effective on October 15, 2019. Read FHA’s new condominium approval regulation.

FHA’s new condominium policy is part of a broader Administration objective to reduce regulatory barriers that currently restrict affordable homeownership opportunities. FHA’s new rule:

Introduces a new single-unit approval process to make it easier for individual condominium units to be eligible for FHA-insured financing;
Extends the recertification requirement for approved condominium projects from two to three years;
Allows more mixed-use projects to be eligible for FHA insurance.
“Condominiums have increasingly become a source of affordable, sustainable homeownership for many families and it’s critical that FHA be there to help them,” said U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson. “Today, we take an important step to open more doors to homeownership for younger, first-time American buyers as well as seniors hoping to age-in-place.”

HUD Acting Deputy Secretary and FHA Commissioner Brian Montgomery added, “Today we are making certain FHA responds to what the market is telling us. This new rule allows FHA to meet its core mission to support eligible borrowers who are ready for homeownership and are most likely to enter the market with the purchase of a condominium.”

The vast majority (84 percent) of FHA-insured condo buyers have never owned a home before. While there are more than 150,000 condominium projects in the U.S., only 6.5 percent are approved to participate in FHA’s mortgage insurance programs. As a result of FHA’s new policy, it is estimated that 20,000 to 60,000 condominium units could become eligible for FHA-insured financing annually.

Single Family Policy Handbook Guidance

FHA’s new Single Family Handbook sections published today to provide the additional requirements that lenders and other industry participants need in order to implement FHA’s new policy, including requirements for single-unit approvals, minimum owner-occupancy requirements, and commercial/non-residential space limits. Read FHA’s changes to its Single Family Handbook.

Single-Unit Approvals

As of October 15, FHA will insure mortgages for selected condominium units in projects that are not currently approved. An individual unit may be eligible for Single-Unit Approval under the following conditions:

The individual condominium unit is located in a completed project that is not approved;
For condominium projects with 10 or more units, no more than 10 percent of individual condo units can be FHA-insured; and projects with fewer than 10 units may have no more than two FHA-insured units.
Minimum Owner-Occupancy Requirements

FHA will require that approved condominium projects have a minimum of 50 percent of the units occupied by owners for most projects.

FHA Insurance Concentration in Condominium Projects

FHA will only insure up to 50 percent of the total number of units in an approved condominium project.

Commercial/Nonresidential Space Limits

FHA will require that the commercial/non-residential space within an approved condominium project not exceed 35 percent of the project’s total floor area.

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HUD’s mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all.
More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet
at www.hud.gov and https://espanol.hud.gov.

You can also connect with HUD on social media and follow Secretary Carson on Twitter and Facebook or sign up for news alerts on HUD’s Email List.

The post New FHA Condo Rules for Oct 15, 2019 appeared first on Bliss Mortgage LLC.

Has your FHA, VA, or Conventional loan been turned down?

What do you do now? Should I give up on my dream of homeownership or try again with someone else?

There are many lenders out there. So, what are the differences? Why did your loan get turned down? Why should I try anyone else? I’m going to address these questions that you have been forced to ask yourself.

There are many differences between lenders. That’s why we have 17 lenders under our roof at Bliss Mortgage. Every lender has overlays whether they tell you or not. Without getting too technical, an overlay is a rule or condition that the lender may have in place in order to strengthen the loans they underwrite and service and to reduce the risk of default by their borrowers. Some lenders may want credit cards paid off and closed in certain situations. Some lenders may require certain judgments or derogatory accounts to be paid off. These items may be required by the lender, but may not be required by FHA or Fannie Mae are called overlays. Some lenders may require higher minimum credit scores. FHA guidelines state that in order to qualify for a 3.5% down payment for FHA, the minimum credit score is 580. Lenders will impose a 600, 620 or 640 minimum credit score in order to reduce the risk of a loan going into default. The credit score is not the only factor when underwriting a loan, but the fewer overlays you have, the better chance you have to close your loan and get the keys to your new home. According to investopedia.com, overlays prevent mortgages. Click here to read the article. These rules or conditions may cause your loan to be turned down-and at times, just a few days before closing. This can be devastating for someone who’s already been emotionally attached or committed to purchasing a home and may feel that there’s nowhere to turn to once they’ve received this news.

Don’t worry – there’s still hope. What you need to do is find a lender who has no overlays. I mean absolutely NO OVERLAYS. A lender with no overlays will go by FHA, VA, or Fannie Mae underwriting guidelines only, and will not have added conditions for your loan. Luckily, you’ve come to the right place. We’re experienced in closing loans others can’t. We’ve helped many families reach their goals.

If you or your buyer (if you’re a realtor) have had an FHA, VA or Conventional loan turned down, contact us to get a second opinion. You may still be in the market of purchasing or refinancing your home. Don’t let another lender kill your dream of homeownership. Let us help #FundYourBliss.

#FundYourBliss #Mortgage #Florida #RealEstate #Tampa

Bliss Mortgage LLC
5331 Primrose Lake Cir Ste 244
Tampa, Fl 33647
Toll-Free 1-888-30-BLISS (1-888-302-5477)
BlissMortgage.com
NMLS# 1564092
Get Started:
For Purchases https://bit.ly/33mc7gM
For Refinances https://bit.ly/2KDbTtf

The post Has your FHA, VA, or Conventional loan been turned down? appeared first on Bliss Mortgage LLC.

Bliss Mortgage LLC is located at 5331 Primrose Lake Circle Suite 244, Tampa, FL 33647. If you want to get a pre-approval in 30 minutes or less, please call the Bliss Mortgage Team at 888-30-BLISS. We are available when you need us.

Although “bankers hours” are M-F 9-5, we are open when you are working. Call us any time and any day. We do what we do to serve you and to help you reach your goals of owning your own home, whether it’s your primary residence, investment property or a second home. We will also lend on Manufactured Homes, Condos, 1-4 Unit dwellings and more. Are you over the age of 62 and would like the equity in your home to work for you and stop the monthly mortgage payments? We are a HECM (Reverse Mortgage) Mortgage Brokerage company. You can use a Reverse Mortgage to refinance out of your traditional forward mortgage or you can even purchase a home using a Reverse Mortgage. And finally, have you had a housing or credit blemish? Well, we also have loan programs to address many different scenarios. Call for more information.

Buying a home can be a stressful process, so let the Licensed Mortgage Loan Originators at Bliss Mortgage assist you and make this a pleasant experience.

Thank you for visiting. Let us know if you have any questions.

Bliss Mortgage LLC NMLS# 1564092. Equal Housing Opportunity.

Start Your Journey Here:
For Purchases https://bit.ly/33mc7gM
For Refinances https://bit.ly/2KDbTtf

The post Bliss Mortgage Helps Home Buyers appeared first on Bliss Mortgage LLC.