How to obtain a resale certificate
What a resale certificate is, who orders it, what is in it, and how to keep it off the critical path of a closing.
What it is
A resale certificate is a statutory disclosure package the association prepares for the sale of a unit. It describes the association as at the date it is prepared: its documents, its finances, and anything a buyer would want to know about the unit and the community.
Washington law requires a seller to deliver one to a buyer. In practice most sales cannot close without it, and it is a routine cause of a closing date slipping — not because it is difficult, but because it is ordered late.
What is in it
- The declaration, bylaws and current rules
- The current budget and the most recent financial statement
- A statement of assessments: the amount, the schedule, and what is owed on that unit
- Reserve information, and the most recent reserve study where there is one
- A summary of the association’s insurance
- Any unsatisfied judgments, pending litigation, or matters that could result in a claim
- Any planned or levied special assessment
- Any known violation affecting that unit
- Restrictions on leasing, and any cap or waiting list
Who orders it, and how
The seller
The obligation to deliver it is the seller’s, so the seller orders it — usually through their escrow officer or listing agent. Buyers do not order it, and cannot.
Where
AGM prepares its associations’ certificates through HomeWiseDocs. Orders for resale certificates, escrow demands, refinance demands and lender questionnaires all go through the same place. You will be asked for the association, the unit and the closing date.
What it costs
The association may charge for preparing it, within the limits the statute sets, and the seller pays. Rush handling generally costs more.
Related documents that are not resale certificates
- Escrow or payoff demand — the figure owed on the unit at closing. Ordered by escrow, close to the date, and it expires.
- Refinance demand — the equivalent when an owner refinances rather than sells.
- Lender questionnaire — a form the buyer’s lender sends about the association: owner-occupancy, delinquency rates, reserve funding, litigation, insurance. Ordered by the lender or escrow, and one of the more common late surprises.
- Certificate of insurance — evidence of the association’s coverage, often required by the lender. See the insurance guide.
These are separate orders with separate fees. Ordering the certificate does not order the rest.
Keeping it off the critical path
- Order as soon as the unit is under contract, not when escrow chases it.
- Clear any arrears first. A certificate reporting a delinquency on the unit is a problem the buyer’s lender will act on.
- Deal with open violations before listing. A recorded violation on the unit has to be disclosed.
- If a special assessment is being discussed, expect it to appear. It has to be disclosed whether or not it has been levied, and a buyer will ask about it.
- Tell your agent the association is professionally managed and orders go through HomeWiseDocs. Agents unfamiliar with the association often lose several days finding that out.
This guide describes how homeowners associations generally work in Washington. It is not legal advice and it is not specific to Queen's Court Owners Association. Where it says what is typical, this association’s own recorded declaration, bylaws and rules decide what is actually true — and where the two differ, the recorded documents control.