Los Angeles condo rules for 2026 and 2027: every change, with dates

The condo rules changed. Most buyers and sellers find out in escrow. We tell you first. This page lists every change to Los Angeles condo rules from 2026 into 2027, with the date each one starts and a link to the full explanation.

Three groups of rules moved at once. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac rewrote how lenders review condo buildings. California's Legislature passed new HOA laws. And older deadlines, the SB 326 balcony inspections and the city's concrete retrofit program, are now showing up in resale packages and loan reviews.

Every change, by date

• January 1, 2025State law, passed
  First SB 326 balcony and deck inspection deadline for condo associations (Civil Code 5551). It was never extended. SB 326 explained.
• January 1, 2026State law, in effect
  SB 410 adds the latest SB 326 report to the resale disclosure package and sets new report content rules.
• March 18, 2026Lending, announced
  Fannie Mae LL-2026-03 and Freddie Mac Bulletin 2026-C. Buildings of 10 units or fewer can skip project review. The 50% investor cap and owner-occupancy rule end for established projects.
• July 1, 2026Lending, in effect
  Master policy per-unit deductible capped at $50,000. Insurance changes.
• August 3, 2026Lending, in effect
  Limited Review retired. Every building over 10 units gets a Full Review. Reserve studies count only at their highest recommended funding level.
• September 20 to 30, 2026State law, signed
  Most 2026 HOA bills are signed or vetoed, including AB 2050 on reserves (Chapter 796). The 2027 laws.
• October 2 to December 1, 2026Association budgets
  Calendar-year HOAs must send their 2027 budget. Its reserve line is what lenders test from January 4.
• January 1, 2027State law, in effect
  Most 2026 HOA and insurance laws take effect, unless a bill sets another date. Servicers start annual insurance checks.
• January 4, 2027Lending, in effect
  The 15% reserve line for Full Review loan applications dated on or after this day. Reserve requirements.
• July 1, 2027State law
  Cities must offer asynchronous inspections for heat pump installs under SB 222.
• Around November 2027City of LA
  The first non-ductile concrete retrofit orders reach their 10-year deadline for plans or proof of retrofit. Retrofit rules.
• January 1, 2028State law
  SB 1301 insurance nonrenewal notice rules begin.
• July 26, 2028Insurance
  The FAIR Plan's high-value commercial program for condo associations is set to sunset.
• January 1, 2032State law
  AB 2050's minimum reserve funding rules become operative.
• January 1, 2034State law
  Next SB 326 inspection cycle, for associations that met the first deadline.

Why this matters at $800,000 and up

The new lending rules hit hardest between $800,000 and about $1.56 million, where buyers use conventional conforming and high-balance loans (up to $1,249,125 in LA County in 2026). Above that, jumbo lenders set their own rules, and many follow Fannie's lead. The loan rules page lays out every change against every loan type.

They arrive in a slower condo market. In LA County in September 2026, per Redfin:

Across 25 LA ZIP codes where the July to September 2026 condo median was $800,000 or more, condo inventory was 63% higher than in the same months of 2022, while condo sales were 8% lower (our sums of Redfin ZIP data). In a market like that, a building that a buyer's lender can't approve loses most of its buyers. We don't predict prices, and none of these rules sets one.

The full September numbers, by area and with every source, are in our monthly LA condo market report.

The guides

Checklists and tools

Look up a building

Our building directory covers about 5,000 LA condo buildings, with unit count and year built on each page. Unit count decides the review path: 10 units or fewer may skip conventional project review, 11 or more get a Full Review. Year built points to which retrofit program could apply. Browse by area from the neighborhood guides, or start with the Westside, Downtown or high-rise pages.

We never label a building warrantable or non-warrantable. Lenders decide that, loan by loan. What we can do is show you what a lender will look at, before you're in escrow.

What we've written before

For the background, see our August 2026 post on the new Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac condo rules, our guide to reading an LA condo HOA budget, and the original guides to financing an LA condo and LA condo HOAs.

Common questions

What condo rules changed in 2026?

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac retired Limited Review on August 3, 2026, so every building over 10 units now gets a Full Review for a conventional loan, while buildings of 10 or fewer may skip review. They also capped master policy deductibles at $50,000 per unit and dropped the investor cap. California passed AB 2050 on reserves and several HOA upgrade laws.

What condo rules start in 2027?

The biggest is the 15% reserve line for conventional Full Review loan applications dated on or after January 4, 2027. Most 2026 California HOA laws take effect January 1, 2027, unless a bill sets another date. In the City of Los Angeles, the first concrete retrofit orders reach their 10-year plan deadline around November 2027.

Do the new condo rules apply to cash buyers?

The lending rules do not apply to a cash purchase, because there is no lender review. The state laws and city ordinances still apply to every owner, and the building issues behind the lending rules still show up as dues, assessments and repair bills. When a cash buyer later sells, the next buyer's lender reviews the building.

Where can I check whether a building meets the new rules?

No public list exists. Fannie Mae's Unavailable status is visible only to lenders and, for their own building, to HOA boards and managers through Condo Status Finder. A lender's project review is the only real answer. We can help you gather the documents that review uses and show what they say before you are in escrow.

This page is general information about published agency guidelines, statutes and ordinances. It is not legal, tax, lending or insurance advice, and we are not lenders, attorneys or insurance brokers. Lenders apply their own overlays, and only a lender’s review decides whether a specific loan in a specific building works. Rules and dates change: confirm anything that affects a decision with your lender, attorney, insurance broker or association. Facts are current as of October 27, 2026.