Decision tool 2
Condo buyer checklist
Tell us about the unit and how you will pay for it. The list narrows to the checks that matter, each with who to ask and the official source.
Before you make an offer free, and takes an afternoon
Confirm it is legally a condominium
A Georgia condo exists only once its declaration, plats and plans are recorded. Read the legal description on the parcel record.
Who to ask: qPublic Lumpkin County, then the seller
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Look up the association on the state register
A condo association’s corporate name must include “condominium association” or “unit owners’ association”; check it is active.
Who to ask: Georgia Secretary of State business search
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Check the HUD FHA condo list for the project
No Lumpkin County project showed an Approved status on Oct. 19, 2026. An FHA loan would need a single-unit approval.
Who to ask: Your FHA lender; HUD’s condo lookup
HUD FHA condo list, checked 2026-10-19
Check the VA condo report for the project
Only The Summit of Dahlonega appears for Lumpkin County, accepted in a May 2022 review.
Who to ask: Your VA lender; the VA condo report
VA condo report, checked 2026-10-19
Check the flood map for the building
FEMA’s map is the official source for flood zones. We do not state any parcel’s flood zone.
Who to ask: FEMA Flood Map Service Center
FEMA, checked 2026-10-19
Read the use restrictions before you plan on rent
Every declaration must state its use restrictions, and rental limits live there and in recorded amendments.
Who to ask: The seller or the association
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
During due diligence while you can still walk away
Get the declaration, bylaws, budget and rules
Owners can amend the declaration with a two-thirds vote, and an amendment counts once it is recorded; ask for every recorded amendment.
Who to ask: The association or its manager
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Ask how the reserves are funded
A Fannie Mae Full Review checks that the budget funds replacement reserves of at least 10%. The budget answers it.
Who to ask: The association; your lender
Fannie Mae Selling Guide, checked 2026-10-19
Ask how many owners are behind on dues
Under a Fannie Mae Full Review, no more than 15% of units may be 60 or more days late on dues.
Who to ask: The association; your lender
Fannie Mae Selling Guide, checked 2026-10-19
Ask about owner occupancy
HUD’s handbook asks for at least 50% owner occupancy for a single-unit approval; your lender confirms current rules.
Who to ask: The association; your FHA lender
HUD Handbook 4000.1, checked 2026-10-19
Read what the master policy covers
Georgia law makes the association insure the buildings and original-grade interiors. Your HO-6 covers the rest the declaration leaves to you.
Who to ask: The association’s insurance agent; your insurer
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Price loss-assessment coverage
An optional HO-6 add-on can pay your share of an assessment for a loss above the master policy’s limits.
Who to ask: Your insurance agent
Maryland Insurance Administration, checked 2026-10-19
Ask about the master-policy deductible
If the instruments allow, the association can charge part of a deductible to affected owners, up to $5,000 per owner per loss.
Who to ask: The association
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Check the City short-term rental rules
City zoning lets short-term rentals operate in every district except R-1, and each rental needs an annual City license. The declaration can still say no.
Who to ask: City of Dahlonega
City of Dahlonega Code, checked 2026-10-19
Check the county short-term rental license
Outside the city, the county host license covers unincorporated Lumpkin only, is non-transferable and expires each Dec. 31.
Who to ask: Lumpkin County
Lumpkin County Code, checked 2026-10-19
Plan for the hotel-motel tax
Lodging inside the city carries the City’s 8% hotel-motel tax, and Georgia adds $5 a night.
Who to ask: City of Dahlonega; Georgia DOR
City of Dahlonega Code, checked 2026-10-19
Use the seven-day review on a first sale
On the first sale of a unit for your own occupancy, the contract is voidable until seven days after you get the declaration, budget and other documents.
Who to ask: Your closing attorney
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Before closing
Request a statement of unpaid assessments
Ask the association’s registered office in writing. If it does not answer within five business days, its lien is extinguished as to you.
Who to ask: Your closing attorney
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Know what an assessment lien can do
Unpaid assessments are a lien that ranks ahead of most others, and the recorded declaration itself is notice of it.
Who to ask: Your closing attorney
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Set up water and sewer in your name
The City runs water and sewer; new customers apply at City Hall. Confirm with a bill that the unit is on City service.
Who to ask: City of Dahlonega
City of Dahlonega, checked 2026-10-19
After you own it
File for homestead if you live in it
You must own and live in the home on January 1 of the tax year. Lumpkin County asks you to file with the Tax Commissioner by April 1.
Who to ask: Lumpkin County Tax Commissioner
Lumpkin County, checked 2026-10-19
Watch for the assessment notice
You have 45 days from the notice to appeal the value.
Who to ask: Lumpkin County Tax Assessors
Lumpkin County, checked 2026-10-19
Keep paying assessments even when you are away
Not using the unit or the amenities does not excuse you from paying assessments.
Who to ask: The association
Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Ask an agent about a specific unit
This checklist is general information from public sources, not legal, tax, lending or insurance advice. Your contract’s due-diligence period is set by your contract; ask your agent or closing attorney.
Why the order matters
Some checks are free and take an afternoon, like confirming the legal form and looking up the project on the FHA and VA lists. Do those before you offer, because they can rule out your loan. Others depend on the association and take days, like the declaration, the budget and the insurance certificate. Those belong inside your due-diligence period, while you can still walk away.
Before the offer
Confirm it is a condominium, then check the federal lists if you are using FHA or VA financing.
Lookups to run first
- A Georgia condominium comes into existence when its declaration and the required plats and plans are recorded. Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
- On Oct. 19, 2026, HUD's FHA condominium list showed three records for Lumpkin County and none with an 'Approved' status. The two Dahlonega records (Ida's Place and The Summit of Dahlonega) show 'Rejected Single-Unit Approval'; the third (The Heritage) shows 'Rejected'. HUD FHA condo list, checked 2026-10-19
- On Oct. 19, 2026 the VA condo report returned only The Summit of Dahlonega for Lumpkin County (two records). No other Dahlonega condo appears on the VA list. VA condo report, checked 2026-10-19
Check the flood map for the specific building too. We never state a parcel’s flood zone.
FEMA's Flood Map Service Center (msc.fema.gov) is the official public source for flood hazard maps. Check the specific building there; we do not state any parcel's flood zone. (FEMA, checked 2026-10-19)
During due diligence
Get the declaration, bylaws, budget and rules from the association, and read the use restrictions before you plan to rent. Then ask what the master policy covers and what your HO-6 policy must pick up.
Documents and insurance
- Every Georgia condominium declaration must state any restrictions on the general use of the condominium, or state that there are none. Rental limits, if any, are found here and in later amendments. Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
- A condo is usually insured under two policies: the association's master policy and the owner's own unit-owner (HO-6) policy, which may cover only the unit interior and contents. Owners should check the association's documents to see which items the master policy covers. Maryland Insurance Administration, checked 2026-10-19
- If the condominium instruments allow, the association can pass part of a master-policy deductible to affected owners, capped at $5,000 per owner per casualty loss. Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
If this is the first sale of the unit from the developer, Georgia gives you a review period after the documents arrive.
On the first sale of a residential condo unit for the buyer's own occupancy, the contract is voidable by the buyer until at least seven days after the seller furnishes the floor plan, declaration, articles and bylaws, budget and other listed documents. This rule covers only the first bona fide sale of each unit, not ordinary resales. (Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19)
Before closing
Have your closing attorney request a written statement of any unpaid assessments on the unit.
A buyer under contract (or a lender) can make a written request to the association's registered office for a statement of past-due assessments. If the association does not furnish it within five business days, the lien is extinguished as to that buyer or lender. The association may charge up to $10 if its instruments allow. (Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19)
After you own it
The homestead exemption is yours to file, and it depends on owning and living in the unit on January 1.
Filings that are on you
- To get a Georgia homestead exemption for a tax year, you must own the home and live in it as your legal residence on January 1 of that year. Georgia Dept. of Revenue, checked 2026-10-19
- Lumpkin County's 2026 tax flyer says homestead applications are filed with the County Tax Commissioner up to and including April 1; applications received later may be applied to the next year's bill. Lumpkin County, checked 2026-10-19
Lumpkin County asks for filing by April 1. If you miss it, ask the Tax Assessors whether a late filing within your assessment-appeal window is accepted.
Your loan type changes the list
The same unit can be an easy purchase with cash and a hard one with an FHA loan. With FHA, the project’s status on HUD’s list and its owner-occupancy level come first. With VA, the project needs to appear on the VA condo report. With a conventional loan, the lender reviews the association’s budget, reserves and delinquencies. Choose your loan type above and the checklist adds the questions your lender will ask, so you can ask them first.
What the checklist does not do
It does not answer any check for you. It shows which questions apply to this purchase and who answers them. It does not look up an address or send what you choose anywhere. Print it, then work through it with your agent, lender, insurance agent and closing attorney.
The offices behind the list
Lumpkin County Clerk of Superior Court
Recorded condominium declarations, plats and amendments
Source: Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
Georgia Secretary of State, Corporations Division
Association name, status and registered office
Source: Official Code of Georgia (via FindLaw), checked 2026-10-19
City of Dahlonega
Short-term rental license, zoning, water and sewer · Dahlonega
City Hall, 465 Riley Road
Source: City of Dahlonega, checked 2026-10-19
Lumpkin County Short-Term Rentals
Host licenses in unincorporated Lumpkin County
Source: Lumpkin County, checked 2026-10-19
Lumpkin County Tax Commissioner
Homestead filing (own and live there on January 1)
Source: Lumpkin County, checked 2026-10-19
The lookups behind the list
qPublic Lumpkin County
Parcels, legal descriptions, assessed values
Source: qPublic Lumpkin County, checked 2026-10-19
HUD FHA condominium lookup
FHA project status
Source: HUD FHA condo list, checked 2026-10-19
VA condo report
VA project reviews
Source: VA condo report, checked 2026-10-19
FEMA Flood Map Service Center
Flood zones by address
Source: FEMA, checked 2026-10-19
Next step
Add up the carrying cost with the cost-to-own worksheet, or follow the full step-by-step guide to buying a condo in Dahlonega.
Questions buyers ask
How many condominiums are there in Dahlonega?
Very few. On Oct. 19, 2026 we could confirm two residential condominiums inside the city: The Summit of Dahlonega and Ida’s Place, each with an active condominium association on the Georgia Secretary of State register and unit-numbered county parcels.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau Geocoder
How do I find out whether a unit owes back assessments?
Before closing, make a written request to the association’s registered office for a statement of past-due assessments. If it does not answer within five business days, the lien is extinguished as to you. It may charge up to $10 if its instruments allow.
Who provides water and sewer to a Dahlonega condo?
The City of Dahlonega runs water and sewer service, and new customers apply at City Hall. A separate county water and sewerage authority also exists, so confirm with a bill which one serves the unit.
Source: City of Dahlonega
How do I check a condo’s flood zone?
Search the building’s address on FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center, the official public source for flood hazard maps. We do not state any parcel’s flood zone.
Source: FEMA
Rules, rates and approvals change. Every rule on this page links to the office or statute that sets it; confirm with that source before you rely on it.