Home › Forums › Closed Forums › Buying and Selling RE › Condo purchase question – high % of renters
- This topic has 8 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 11 years, 6 months ago by bearishgurl.
-
AuthorPosts
-
September 4, 2007 at 9:23 AM #10167September 4, 2007 at 2:07 PM #83315SD RealtorParticipant
Lenders all have their own criteria when it comes to giving you an owner occupied rate on a loan for condo complexes. Remember an owner occupied rate will always be better then an second home or investment property rate. So yes if you buy into a complex with a low owner occupancy rate, then chances are the lender will not give you the owner occupied rate on your loan. The criteria varies. Mortgage brokers are better at answering this then I am, but usually the lenders like to see at least a 66% owner occupancy in the complex. Like I said, it can vary with the part of town, the complex, the lender, etc…
SD Realtor
September 4, 2007 at 2:43 PM #83319asragovParticipantThe idea here is to encourage people either to buy SFR or to buy in a condo complex where there are more owners than renters.
It seems like a sound risk management strategy on the part of lenders – renters don’t really have “pride in ownership.”
August 28, 2012 at 10:04 PM #750839edna_modeParticipantBumping this thread — can anyone give me an idea of current lenders’ % owner-occ rates to qualify for a mortgage?
August 28, 2012 at 10:17 PM #750843spdrunParticipant… or condo boards should adopt a dont-ask-dont-tell policy on subletting, and assume that all units are owner-occupied unless they’re told otherwise.
If bills and documents are sent electronically, there should be no issue with mailing address of record.
August 29, 2012 at 6:42 AM #750848SD RealtorParticipantYou need to check with them. I have heard owner occupancy rates need to be at least 50% and I have heard 66%. It varies with lenders but the most important thing is that it meets guidelines so that the loan can be purchased by a GSE. Better to ask the lender rather then here.
August 29, 2012 at 11:40 AM #750867bearishgurlParticipant[quote=spdrun]… or condo boards should adopt a dont-ask-dont-tell policy on subletting, and assume that all units are owner-occupied unless they’re told otherwise.
If bills and documents are sent electronically, there should be no issue with mailing address of record.[/quote]
spdrun,
In CA, tax billed are *mailed* via snail mail beginning the third week of September for the following fiscal year. They are mailed to the owner of record who is *supposed* to drop the $7K homeowner’s exemption (HOEX) when they move. Obviously, if they buy another principal residence in the same county and want to claim that property for their HOEX, they must take the HOEX off the property they moved out of, as they are only allowed to claim ONE. Many owners continue to claim the HOEX after moving out (improper), and, if they rent that property out, their tenant gets their tax bills in the mail. If their tenant loses it or moves out and has it forwarded, they can easily obtain a duplicate tax bill by showing up at an assessor branch and identifying themselves, claiming they “lost” their tax bill or just pay the amount by credit card online which is shown in the online public records for their parcel(s).
I’m sure a lot of owners do this because it saves them about $70 per year (HOEX is worth 7K) on their tax bills and will almost cover their online credit card fee if they pay by cc twice per year. However widespread this practice is, it is improper. However, I don’t see how one CA assessor can find out if a taxpayer is claiming a HOEX in another CA county. I don’t think they coordinate with each other on this level. And they certainly wouldn’t know if a taxpayer was living in a principal residence they purchased in another state/country if their (local) tenant was willing to intercept their tax bills.
This “ruse” only works if the taxpayer does NOT have an impound account for taxes.
August 29, 2012 at 12:59 PM #750874SD RealtorParticipantThere are strict guidelines for reporting occupancy rules. Once more, this stuff for the most part originates with the underwriting guidelines for the GSE’s.
You don’t like it, complain to the GSE’s which is in essence a branch of your government.
Don’t advocate private entities commit fraud.
August 29, 2012 at 1:35 PM #750875bearishgurlParticipant[quote=SD Realtor]There are strict guidelines for reporting occupancy rules. Once more, this stuff for the most part originates with the underwriting guidelines for the GSE’s.
You don’t like it, complain to the GSE’s which is in essence a branch of your government.
Don’t advocate private entities commit fraud.[/quote]
I agree that a member of a condo assn would have a hard time moving out and renting their unit and then claiming to the tax assessor that they are still occupying the unit. I’m sure an HOA is well aware of which units are owner-occupied and which are tenant-occupied.
And no, I have never mis-reported my occupancy status to the assessor but I have noticed quite often that many others do for the long term, ESP if they have a “trusted” relative occupying the premises.
I’m sure part of the reason for this is that these owners may have a mortgage that requires owner-occupancy, at least for the years that they end up leaving the property early.
It is what it is.
-
AuthorPosts
- The forum ‘Buying and Selling RE’ is closed to new topics and replies.