Traditionally, in second home markets, it has been much easier to get financing than in primary home markets.  About a third of our transactions were cash, which of course, is the easiest of all!  Today, financing has become an issue when condos and townhomes are being purchased.  Many people buying second homes prefer a condo as they don't have to worry about maintenance.  The roof and exterior are taken care of by the homes association. 

It has always been the case that the property had to qualify together with the Buyer, but the lenders now must approve all the details of the HOA.  They look at Decs and Bylaws, number of rentals (do ski condos with 3-7 day rentals count?) whether there is a front desk or not, and how much money the HOA has in reserves.  I recently wrote a long post about the changes we are undergoing, and can't copy here for fear of "duplicate content"!  If you would like to read more about our Summit County, Colorado real estate issues and how they compare to yours, just click the link above.

Loans are now an issue for our markets too!  Is your market affected the same way?  Perhaps you don't have the percentage of condos that we have, but most vacation home markets do.