06/16/2026
A high-rise view is an amenity. A pristine balance sheet is a luxury. The secondary mortgage market is quietly sorting Chicago’s high-density residential properties into two categories: those that remain viable for conventional financing, and those that don't. The immediate friction on the ground isn’t just a price negotiation between a buyer and a seller anymore—it’s a head-on collision between a condo board’s financial history and an underwriter's checklist.
With Fannie Mae eliminating the “Limited Review” option on August 1, 2026, and a strict 15% minimum reserve allocation taking effect on January 4, 2027, the days of keeping monthly assessments artificially low to keep the peace at annual meetings are officially over. A $50,000 per-unit master policy deductible cap is forcing liability squarely onto individual HO6 policies, and boards that have spent decades kicking the capital maintenance can down the road are running out of asphalt. Beautiful finishes can always be replicated. Genuine financial discipline cannot.
Read the full story here on our blog: Curated: https://hoganzavalagroup.evrealestate.com/blog/fannie-mae-condo-guidelines-2026-2027-chicago-luxury
