What Is a Condo Questionnaire?

Short answer

A condo questionnaire is a standardized form the lender sends to the condominium association (or its management company) asking about the building's finances, insurance, litigation, owner-occupancy, commercial space and structural condition. The answers decide whether the building is warrantable for a conventional loan, and which lenders will finance it. In Miami it is often the single document that makes or breaks a condo closing.

Definition

The condo questionnaire (Fannie Mae Form 1076 / Freddie Mac Form 476 or a lender's own version) documents project eligibility. The association usually charges a fee to complete it and takes several days to two weeks.

Worked example

A 120-unit building in Aventura. The questionnaire shows: 78 owner-occupied, 34 rented, 8 second homes; one investor owns 14 units (14 / 120 = 11.7%); 9 units more than 60 days late on dues (9 / 120 = 7.5%); annual budget $1,800,000 with $162,000 going to reserves (162,000 / 1,800,000 = 9%); no litigation; master insurance in force; milestone inspection completed with no phase two required. Each lender compares these ratios with its guidelines. The delinquency percentage, for example, is a common tripwire, and single-investor concentration is another.

What the questionnaire asks

• Owner-occupancy versus rentals and second homes.
• Units owned by a single entity and delinquencies over 60 days.
• Percentage of budget going to reserves and current reserve balance.
• Pending litigation and its nature.
• Commercial space percentage and whether the project is complete and out of developer control.
• Insurance: master hazard, windstorm, flood, liability and fidelity coverage.
• Structural: milestone inspection status, deferred maintenance, special assessments.

Timing and cost

Associations in Miami commonly charge for the questionnaire and may charge extra for rush service. Ask your agent to request the association's budget, financials and insurance certificate at contract so the lender can start review before the questionnaire returns. If a closing deadline is tight, this is the document to chase first. The rate lock period should allow for it.

In South Florida

Since 2022, lenders have added structural questions for Florida condos: has the building completed its milestone inspection, is a phase two required, is there a SIRS, are there unfunded repairs or special assessments, and is the master insurance adequate for windstorm. Many Miami-Dade buildings built before 1995 trip one of these and become non-warrantable. Order the questionnaire early, budget for the association's fee, and have a backup lender in mind. See non-warrantable condo loans if the answers are not clean.