Optima Kierland is where the three hardest questions in Scottsdale lending meet in one transaction: a borrower with no US tax returns or credit file, a high-rise project that must pass review on its own merits, and a building with amenity and service levels that raise the condotel question.
Any one of those ends a deal on its own. Here is how each works, and the order to answer them in.
Question one: the project, before anything else
Answer this first, because if the project fails, your qualification is irrelevant.
Every attached unit is subject to condominium project review:
Owner-occupancy ratio. A high share of non-owner-occupants restricts or fails a project on agency financing, and requirements are stricter for a second home or investment purchase than for a primary residence. In a luxury high-rise with substantial second-home and investor ownership, this is a leading finding.
Commercial square footage. Guidelines cap the non-residential share of a project's floor area. Mixed-use towers with retail and restaurant space can exceed it.
Reserves and the budget. Underfunded associations fail. A high-rise has serious long-term capital needs, so the reserve study matters more here than in a low-rise.
Litigation, delinquencies, single-entity ownership. Each fails projects independently.
Condotel classification. A building operating with a front desk, concierge-managed short-term stays, daily housekeeping, rental desk services or mandatory rental pooling can be classified as a condotel and fall outside agency financing entirely. Ask directly and early what services the building provides and whether any rental program operates.
Get the HOA questionnaire, budget, reserve study, master insurance certificate, litigation disclosure, meeting minutes and the owner-occupancy percentage before you remove contingencies. Full review in Scottsdale Luxury Condo Financing.
If the project is non-warrantable, portfolio and non-QM condo financing exists, at a larger down payment and different pricing. That is a workable deal. It is just a different one, and you want to know which you are in early.
Question two: qualifying without a US financial history
A foreign national loan is a separate product, not a conventional loan with extra paperwork. Most banks do not offer it.
Identity and status. Valid passport, and a visa where one applies. Terms often differ between a non-resident with no US presence and a foreign national living here on a visa.
Credit. With no US credit file, lenders substitute an international credit report where obtainable, or build an alternative profile from two or more reference letters from banks in your home country confirming the relationship, its length and good standing.
Income. Home country documentation: employer letters, your jurisdiction's tax filings, accountant letters if self-employed, bank statements. Documents in another language generally require certified translation, which takes time nobody budgets for.
Assets and reserves. Expect meaningful reserves after closing, often more than a domestic jumbo. Funds usually need seasoning in a US account, and international transfers take longer than expected with their own compliance review at the receiving bank.
Down payment. Substantially larger than domestic. This is the biggest practical difference.
Entity purchases. Buying through an LLC or trust is workable on the right program but changes the file. Raise it on the first call.
Foreign national lending is non-agency and prices differently than agency financing because the risk profile is different.
Question three: what you will actually do with it
A property used part of the year is a second home. One held for income is an investment property. They carry different down payments and pricing, and only the investment classification lets rental income help you qualify. A second home must stay under your exclusive control, so a management agreement that dictates occupancy breaks it. See Second Home or Investment Property in Scottsdale.
If it is an investment, DSCR may be the cleaner path. A debt service coverage ratio loan tests the property's income against the payment rather than your personal income, which sidesteps the income documentation problem entirely, and several investors offer DSCR to foreign nationals. Note that lenders discount projected short-term rental income heavily and the association may prohibit it regardless. See Spring Training, the Open, and Your Loan.
The obligation stack
High-rise association dues in an amenity-rich tower are substantial and feed straight into your calculation. Ask whether any assessment is approved but not yet billed. See HOA Dues, Club Dues and Assessments.
Before you write
- Get the owner-occupancy percentage and ask about hotel-style services first. If the project fails, nothing else matters.
- Start documentation early. Translations, international credit reports and reference letters all take longer than domestic paperwork.
- Move funds early and document the trail.
- Decide the ownership structure, personal or entity, before applying.
- Read the association's rental policy including any minimum lease term.
- Get fully underwritten, not pre-qualified. A pre-qualification is a calculator built for domestic borrowers.
Why bring this file to us
- Broker model, and here it is the entire point. Most banks have no foreign national product and no non-warrantable condo product. This transaction needs both.
- We pull the project documents before you are committed, because on a high-rise that is the first gate.
- We tell you the document list on the first call, including what needs translating.
- The full toolkit, foreign national through DSCR, portfolio condo financing and non-QM.
- You talk to the principal. Ricky Khamis is President of EPiQ Lending, NMLS #173141, lending in Arizona since 1999 and a 2025 Presidents Club Winner at CMG Home Loans. Direct line: (480) 999-9842.
EPiQ Lending is NMLS #1936984, at 7975 N. Hayden Road, Suite A-101 in Scottsdale. Verify all of it before you trust any of it: Ricky's EPiQ Lending profile, the Scottsdale branch, and the license itself at NMLS Consumer Access. Hold every lender to that standard, including us.
Send me the building and your country of residence and I will tell you whether the project clears and which programs are open to you.
Equal Housing Opportunity. This is general information, not a commitment to lend or an offer to extend credit. Foreign national program requirements, condominium project standards and documentation standards vary by investor and change over time. Rates, terms, and program guidelines change and depend on credit approval, property appraisal, and other qualifying factors. Not all applicants will qualify. Foreign national, DSCR, portfolio and non-QM financing carries different pricing and terms than agency financing. Consult your tax advisor regarding the US tax consequences of purchasing and holding property as a non-resident.
Looking at a specific home? Send me the address and I will run the numbers: rickykhamis.com/analyze
