Buying a condo or townhome in the Bay Area
A condo is two purchases at once, the unit and the association. I read the HOA documents and the lender's rules together, before you write the offer.
You are buying two things at once
A condo or townhome is often how a Bay Area buyer gets in at a price that works. You stop paying rent increases and you give up a yard and some control. That is a reasonable trade, and plenty of my buyers make it on purpose.
What catches people out is that buying a condo in the Bay Area means buying two things at once. You buy the unit, and you buy a share of a building that other people run.
I'm Chaitali (CeCe) Cherian of KeysWithCeCe. I'm a REALTOR® with eXp Realty and a licensed loan officer. Two of the purchases I have closed were condos, one in San Jose and one in Newark. I have also closed a non-warrantable condo with several problems at the association, on time, for a buyer whose file most agents would have handed back.
Condo deals rarely fall apart over the unit. They fall apart over the association, usually after the offer is accepted, when the lender finally reads the documents. I read them earlier.
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Why a lender can say no to a condo that looks fine
A single-family home is judged on its own. A condo is judged on the building too. Your lender reviews the association's finances and rules before it will lend on your unit, and a problem there can end a loan on a home that is in perfect condition.
These are the things that actually stop condo loans:
- Owners behind on their dues. Lenders set a limit on how much of an association can be delinquent. One building passes and the one across the street does not.
- Reserves. Associations are expected to put a share of the budget aside for future repairs. A thin reserve reads to a lender as a special assessment waiting to happen.
- How many units are rented out. A building where most units are tenant occupied is treated as a different risk than one where most owners live there.
- Litigation. An association in a lawsuit, especially over construction defects, can be unfinanceable until it is resolved.
- Commercial space, or one owner with too many units. Both count against the building, and neither one shows up on the listing.
- Restrictions on resale. Some older associations carry rules on transferring a unit that a lender will not accept.
A building that fails enough of these is called non-warrantable. That does not make it unbuyable. It makes it a different loan, often with more money down, and it is something to know before you write the offer rather than three weeks into escrow.
I read the HOA documents and the loan file together
I'm your agent and I can be your loan officer on the same purchase, so one person reads the association's paperwork and your loan file side by side. When I act in both roles, I tell you in writing, and you are always free to use a different lender. Every loan is subject to underwriting approval. NMLS #2590353.
On a condo that matters more than it does on a house. An agent who never touches financing can hand you a clean inspection report on a building no lender will approve. A loan officer who never sees the HOA packet finds out in week three, when your deposit is already at risk. Reading both at once turns a condo problem into something you negotiate instead of something that kills the deal.
Before you write an offer I go through the association's budget and reserve study, the meeting minutes where repairs are being argued about, the dues and what they actually cover, the delinquency and rental figures, any special assessment already voted on or being discussed, and whether a tenant is living there and on what terms. My post on 5 HOA red flags East Bay condo buyers miss walks through the ones buyers skip most often.
What buying a condo with me looks like
- A free financing session first. About 30 minutes on Zoom, before any showings. HOA dues count against what you qualify for, so a budget set without them is wrong from the first day. Book a free financing session.
- A condo budget, not a house budget. Your payment with dues included, and what a building with higher dues does to the price you can look at.
- A read on the building before you fall for the unit. I pull what is public and ask for the rest early, so we know whether the association is financeable while you still have choices.
- An offer written around what the building needs. If the association has a problem that costs money, that belongs in the price or in a credit from the seller, not in a surprise after closing.
- Escrow with the HOA review tracked. My buyers keep the standard inspection, appraisal, and loan contingencies in the California purchase agreement. The HOA document review has its own deadline and I track it like any other date.
Want the full step by step? Read how buying a home works with me. Buying your first place and it happens to be a condo? Start on my first-time buyer page, then come back here.
Where I help condo and townhome buyers
I work with condo and townhome buyers across the Bay Area, including Oakland, Fremont, Hayward, San Leandro, Castro Valley, Dublin, Pleasanton, Newark, San Jose, and Tracy. I also help buyers in San Ramon, Alamo, Union City, Morgan Hill, and San Francisco.
Buildings vary more than houses do. Two towers a few blocks apart can carry very different dues, very different reserves, and a very different answer from the same lender. So I look at the specific association every time instead of going by the city or the complex's reputation.
If you already own a condo and are moving up out of it, the sale and the purchase have their own plan. That is on my selling and buying at the same time page.
I work with clients in English, Hindi, and Bengali.
Your next step on a Bay Area condo or townhome
If you are looking at condos, the cheapest moment to find a problem is before you write the offer. Pick a starting point:
- Book a free financing session and get a condo budget with dues in it.
- Get the free financing guide if you would rather read first.
- Send me the listing or call (510) 610-0124. I'll tell you what I'd want to see on that building.
This page is general education about my process. It is not a commitment to lend, an offer of credit, or legal, tax, or financial advice. Loan programs change and are subject to funding availability and borrower qualification. NMLS #2590353.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a non-warrantable condo?
It is a condo in a building that does not meet a lender's standard project rules, for reasons like too many owners behind on dues, thin reserves, a high share of rentals, or ongoing litigation. It can still be bought. It usually needs a different loan program and often more money down, subject to underwriting approval.
Do HOA dues affect how much I can borrow?
Yes. Lenders count the monthly dues as part of your housing payment, so two units at the same price can give you very different answers. That is why I set a condo budget with the dues in it before we start looking.
When do I get to see the HOA documents?
In California the seller provides the association documents during escrow, and your review has its own deadline. I ask for whatever is available earlier than that, because the information that can end a loan is usually in the budget and the minutes.
Can you help if the building already has a special assessment?
Often yes. A known assessment is a number, and a number can be negotiated into the price or paid by the seller at closing. The deals that hurt are the ones where nobody read the minutes and the assessment arrives after you own it.
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Ready to make your move with KeysWithCeCe?