FHA Loans – Not All Homes Qualify
It is a common misconception that all homes qualify for all types of financing. Many buyers wanting to utilize a low down payment mortgage to purchase a home look to an FHA loan because of its 3.5% down payment option. Unfortunately, if buyers are looking to purchase a condominium instead of a single family home, their options can be limited to condos that “qualify” for FHA financing. While the guidelines are the same all over the valley, let’s use Tempe as an example of what I mean by limiting your options when buying a condo.
Recently, we looked at the website for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. You know, HUD, the guys that make the rules for FHA loans. What we found is that, in the entire city of Tempe, only 6 condominium complexes are listed as being “HUD Approved Condominium Projects.” Basically, what that means is, if you are trying to purchase a condo in Tempe, your FHA loan choices are limited to a very small percentage of buildings that have homes for sale. Even if mom and dad are helping with a “parent student home loan” and have golden credit with tons of cash in the bank, HUD says “no can do.” Yes, really.
The list below shows the complexes we saw as being FHA approved as of 02/12/2016. This list does change from time to time so please contact us if you would like an updated copy at any time. In fact, it looks like the Springdale Condos could expire as soon as next week.
Alameda Park, 102 W Concorda 85282 – 136 units, Expires 9/11/2017
Broadmor Place, 17 E Fiesta Dr 85282 – 51 units (31: 1 story units 20: 2 story units 6 buildings.) Expires 6/17/2017
Hudson Trace, 2333 E Southern 85282 – 138 units, Expires /04/2018
Mistwood Condominiums, 633 W Southern 85282, Expires 10/20/2017
Springdale Condominiums, 1222 W Baseline 85283 – 114 units Expires 2/14/2016
Villagio condominiums 2401 E Rio Salado 85281 ( multiple addresses, all “should” be approved? ) 742 units Expires 3/17/17
It looks like the 525 Town Lake condos applied in 2013 but were rejected due to missing documents or incomplete package submission
University Ranch Condominiums 905 S Lola Lane 85281 – 112 units rejected due to missing documents or incomplete package submission ( applied 2/14 )
Many single family homes will qualify for FHA financing, but there are things that can eliminate them from the equation. For an updated and accurate list of homes for sale in any area, contact The Nick Bastian Team at 602-803-6425. We’ll be happy to help in any way.
The homes below are condominiums in FHA approved complexes.
FHA Condos in Tempe
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3 Comments
Great info – the list of FHA approved condos is ever evolving. New condos as approved and old approvals expire for various reasons. One thing I have seen repeatedly is that properties are listed inaccurately. A town home is listed as a condo or vice versa. Always important to dig a little deeper on the front end if you are buying a town home or condo just to make sure the property is listed correctly (as a condo or town home) and to make sure it is eligible for the type of financing being used.
How does one find out if a townhouse is listed inaccurately and is really a condo?
Hi Tyler,
We use a combination of tax records, HUD’s web site, etc.