How many presales does a new condo need in 2026?
Presale rules for new condos in 2026: Fannie Mae 50%, VA 70%, New York 15%, Florida deposits, and how to turn them into a lead target.
Presale rules for new condos in 2026: Fannie Mae 50%, VA 70%, New York 15%, Florida deposits, and how to turn them into a lead target.
Short answer: there is no single number. It depends on who finances the buyers and the building. Fannie Mae will not back a mortgage in a new condominium until 50% of the units in the project or legal phase are sold or under contract to owner-occupants or second-home buyers. The VA requires 70%. In New York, a sponsor cannot declare an offering plan effective until at least 15% of the units are under contract. Your construction lender sets its own presale covenant on top of these. Your marketing plan has to hit the highest of these numbers, by the date your lender needs it.
This guide collects the rules in one place, checked against the primary sources on 27 September 2026. It then turns them into a marketing target: how many leads and reservations it takes to reach them.
The presale thresholds at a glance
Who sets it | Threshold | What counts | Why it matters to a developer |
|---|---|---|---|
Fannie Mae (Selling Guide, August 2026) | 50% of total units in the project or legal phase | Units conveyed or under contract to principal-residence or second-home buyers | Most buyers need a conventional mortgage. Below 50%, many cannot close. |
VA (Lenders Handbook, Chapter 16) | 70% of total units | Bona fide purchase agreements from buyers other than the developer | Veteran buyers cannot use a VA loan in the project until you get there. |
New York Attorney General (13 NYCRR Part 20) | 15% of units offered | Purchase agreements accepted under the offering plan | The plan cannot be declared effective, and contracts cannot close, below this. |
Florida (Statute 718.202) | Deposit rule, not a sales threshold | Buyer deposits above 10% of the price go to a special escrow account | The contract can let you use that money for construction once construction begins. |
Your construction lender | Set in your loan terms | Usually hard contracts with non-refundable deposits | This is often the binding number, and it comes before the loan funds. |
FHA runs its own condominium project approval with separate presale and owner-occupancy rules. Confirm the current figure with an FHA lender before you plan around it.
Why the construction lender's number is the one that counts
The agency rules decide whether your buyers can get mortgages at closing. The construction lender decides whether the building gets financed at all. Lenders use presales to show that the market wants the units and that deposits back that up. Terms vary with the lender, the market and the cycle. In Miami, large buyer deposits became the lender norm after the last downturn: Bilzin Sumberg described deposits of around 50% as standard for construction financing there in 2013. Ask your lender three things in writing: the presale percentage, the minimum deposit per contract, and which contracts count (for example, whether investor, related-party or bulk sales are excluded).
From presale target to marketing target
This is where most launch plans go wrong. The target is set in units, but marketing is planned in impressions. Work backward instead:
Contracts needed. Take the highest applicable threshold. For a 100-unit building at 50%, that is 50 contracts.
Reservations needed. Some reservations never become contracts. Plan for the fall-off your sales team has seen before, and add a buffer.
Qualified leads needed. On our West Loop, Chicago launch, 180 qualified buyer leads produced 22 reservations for 48 units before groundbreaking, about 1 reservation for every 8 qualified leads. At that rate, 50 reservations needs roughly 400 qualified leads.
Time available. Divide the leads by the months between launch and your lender's date. That gives you the monthly lead target the media plan has to deliver.
Your ratios will differ by price point, market and product, and one project is not a benchmark. The method is what carries over: set the target in contracts and plan every channel back from it.
What buyers need to see before they sign
Floor plans, sizes and prices for every residence, kept current.
Hyper-realistic renders and a walkthrough film, labeled as visualizations, showing the real view from the real floor.
A launch website with residence pages and a way to reserve or book an appointment.
Proof the developer delivers: past buildings, construction partners and, once work starts, construction film every few weeks.
The paperwork buyers ask about: the offering plan or public report status, the deposit schedule and where deposits are held.
A presale calendar that hits the lender's date
Months before the lender's presale date | What has to happen |
|---|---|
12 to 9 | Positioning, name, brand, pricing logic, and the filings your state requires to market |
9 to 6 | Renders, walkthrough film and launch website; waitlist campaigns start |
6 to 3 | Broker previews, private appointments and the first release to the waitlist |
3 to 0 | Paid media at full weight, weekly contract reporting against the target, a price or incentive review if the pace is behind |
What it costs
Condo marketing budgets commonly land at 1% to 1.5% of projected sellout, and up to 3% for slow or luxury sellouts. Our full launch programs run $8,000 to $25,000 a month, launch websites $25,000 to $50,000 and films $15,000 to $50,000, all on our pricing page. Our presale budget calculator models the spend from your own numbers.
Questions
What percentage of condo units must be presold?
For Fannie Mae financing, 50% of the units in the project or legal phase must be sold or under contract to owner-occupants or second-home buyers. For VA financing, 70%. Your construction lender may require its own percentage before funding.
When can a New York condo sponsor start closing?
Only after the offering plan is accepted by the Attorney General and declared effective, which requires contracts on at least 15% of the units offered. Before acceptance, sponsors can only test the market through a CPS-1 filing.
Can a Florida developer use buyer deposits for construction?
Deposits up to 10% of the price follow the general escrow rules. Deposits above 10% go to a special escrow account and can be used for construction only if the contract allows it and construction has begun.
How many leads does it take to presell a condo building?
Work it back from contracts. On one Chicago launch, about 8 qualified leads produced 1 reservation. At that rate, 50 presales needs around 400 qualified leads, but your own ratio depends on price point and market.
This is a planning summary, not legal or lending advice. Rules change, so confirm current requirements with your counsel and lender before launch.
Sources
Checked 27 September 2026: Fannie Mae Selling Guide, new condo projects, VA Pamphlet 26-7, Chapter 16, 13 NYCRR 20.3, Florida Statutes 718.202 (2025), Bilzin Sumberg (2013).
Written by Kirill Samarits, founder and CEO, and Yiannis (John) Deves, partner and COO, TERAMOK. Related: How to sell condos before they are built, the West Loop case study.
Short answer: there is no single number. It depends on who finances the buyers and the building. Fannie Mae will not back a mortgage in a new condominium until 50% of the units in the project or legal phase are sold or under contract to owner-occupants or second-home buyers. The VA requires 70%. In New York, a sponsor cannot declare an offering plan effective until at least 15% of the units are under contract. Your construction lender sets its own presale covenant on top of these. Your marketing plan has to hit the highest of these numbers, by the date your lender needs it.
This guide collects the rules in one place, checked against the primary sources on 27 September 2026. It then turns them into a marketing target: how many leads and reservations it takes to reach them.
The presale thresholds at a glance
Who sets it | Threshold | What counts | Why it matters to a developer |
|---|---|---|---|
Fannie Mae (Selling Guide, August 2026) | 50% of total units in the project or legal phase | Units conveyed or under contract to principal-residence or second-home buyers | Most buyers need a conventional mortgage. Below 50%, many cannot close. |
VA (Lenders Handbook, Chapter 16) | 70% of total units | Bona fide purchase agreements from buyers other than the developer | Veteran buyers cannot use a VA loan in the project until you get there. |
New York Attorney General (13 NYCRR Part 20) | 15% of units offered | Purchase agreements accepted under the offering plan | The plan cannot be declared effective, and contracts cannot close, below this. |
Florida (Statute 718.202) | Deposit rule, not a sales threshold | Buyer deposits above 10% of the price go to a special escrow account | The contract can let you use that money for construction once construction begins. |
Your construction lender | Set in your loan terms | Usually hard contracts with non-refundable deposits | This is often the binding number, and it comes before the loan funds. |
FHA runs its own condominium project approval with separate presale and owner-occupancy rules. Confirm the current figure with an FHA lender before you plan around it.
Why the construction lender's number is the one that counts
The agency rules decide whether your buyers can get mortgages at closing. The construction lender decides whether the building gets financed at all. Lenders use presales to show that the market wants the units and that deposits back that up. Terms vary with the lender, the market and the cycle. In Miami, large buyer deposits became the lender norm after the last downturn: Bilzin Sumberg described deposits of around 50% as standard for construction financing there in 2013. Ask your lender three things in writing: the presale percentage, the minimum deposit per contract, and which contracts count (for example, whether investor, related-party or bulk sales are excluded).
From presale target to marketing target
This is where most launch plans go wrong. The target is set in units, but marketing is planned in impressions. Work backward instead:
Contracts needed. Take the highest applicable threshold. For a 100-unit building at 50%, that is 50 contracts.
Reservations needed. Some reservations never become contracts. Plan for the fall-off your sales team has seen before, and add a buffer.
Qualified leads needed. On our West Loop, Chicago launch, 180 qualified buyer leads produced 22 reservations for 48 units before groundbreaking, about 1 reservation for every 8 qualified leads. At that rate, 50 reservations needs roughly 400 qualified leads.
Time available. Divide the leads by the months between launch and your lender's date. That gives you the monthly lead target the media plan has to deliver.
Your ratios will differ by price point, market and product, and one project is not a benchmark. The method is what carries over: set the target in contracts and plan every channel back from it.
What buyers need to see before they sign
Floor plans, sizes and prices for every residence, kept current.
Hyper-realistic renders and a walkthrough film, labeled as visualizations, showing the real view from the real floor.
A launch website with residence pages and a way to reserve or book an appointment.
Proof the developer delivers: past buildings, construction partners and, once work starts, construction film every few weeks.
The paperwork buyers ask about: the offering plan or public report status, the deposit schedule and where deposits are held.
A presale calendar that hits the lender's date
Months before the lender's presale date | What has to happen |
|---|---|
12 to 9 | Positioning, name, brand, pricing logic, and the filings your state requires to market |
9 to 6 | Renders, walkthrough film and launch website; waitlist campaigns start |
6 to 3 | Broker previews, private appointments and the first release to the waitlist |
3 to 0 | Paid media at full weight, weekly contract reporting against the target, a price or incentive review if the pace is behind |
What it costs
Condo marketing budgets commonly land at 1% to 1.5% of projected sellout, and up to 3% for slow or luxury sellouts. Our full launch programs run $8,000 to $25,000 a month, launch websites $25,000 to $50,000 and films $15,000 to $50,000, all on our pricing page. Our presale budget calculator models the spend from your own numbers.
Questions
What percentage of condo units must be presold?
For Fannie Mae financing, 50% of the units in the project or legal phase must be sold or under contract to owner-occupants or second-home buyers. For VA financing, 70%. Your construction lender may require its own percentage before funding.
When can a New York condo sponsor start closing?
Only after the offering plan is accepted by the Attorney General and declared effective, which requires contracts on at least 15% of the units offered. Before acceptance, sponsors can only test the market through a CPS-1 filing.
Can a Florida developer use buyer deposits for construction?
Deposits up to 10% of the price follow the general escrow rules. Deposits above 10% go to a special escrow account and can be used for construction only if the contract allows it and construction has begun.
How many leads does it take to presell a condo building?
Work it back from contracts. On one Chicago launch, about 8 qualified leads produced 1 reservation. At that rate, 50 presales needs around 400 qualified leads, but your own ratio depends on price point and market.
This is a planning summary, not legal or lending advice. Rules change, so confirm current requirements with your counsel and lender before launch.
Sources
Checked 27 September 2026: Fannie Mae Selling Guide, new condo projects, VA Pamphlet 26-7, Chapter 16, 13 NYCRR 20.3, Florida Statutes 718.202 (2025), Bilzin Sumberg (2013).
Written by Kirill Samarits, founder and CEO, and Yiannis (John) Deves, partner and COO, TERAMOK. Related: How to sell condos before they are built, the West Loop case study.
Editorial standards
Written by TERAMOK’s strategy team from direct work with real estate developers, architecture firms, construction companies, and operators. Claims are tied to published project evidence or identified as general guidance.
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Chicago's in-house production and marketing team for real estate.
Book a free 30-minute strategy call. Tell us about your project, your firm, or your launch — and we'll show you exactly how TERAMOK plugs into your operation with cinema-grade production, campaign strategy, and senior creative.
Get started
Chicago's in-house production and marketing team for real estate.
Book a free 30-minute strategy call. Tell us about your project, your firm, or your launch — and we'll show you exactly how TERAMOK plugs into your operation with cinema-grade production, campaign strategy, and senior creative.
Get started
Chicago's in-house production and marketing team for real estate.
Book a free 30-minute strategy call. Tell us about your project, your firm, or your launch — and we'll show you exactly how TERAMOK plugs into your operation with cinema-grade production, campaign strategy, and senior creative.