How to Complete and Submit the HUD-92300 Mortgagee’s Assurance of Completion

HUD Form 92300, the Mortgagee’s Assurance of Completion, is the lender’s written guarantee to HUD that minor unfinished work on a property will be completed after an FHA-insured loan closes. The lender signs the form, sets aside money in a dedicated escrow account, and routes portions of the five-part form to the local HUD Field Office as part of the insurance endorsement package. Buyers, sellers, and builders run into it when a house is livable at closing but a small outdoor or seasonal item is still outstanding.

When the Form Applies

Form 92300 is only for properties that are habitable, safe, and essentially finished, with minor work that could not wrap up before closing. HUD’s escrow handbook draws the line clearly: items essential for customary occupant use, property safety, or durability cannot be deferred under this form.¹ The work has to be minor and uncomplicated. Typical items are landscaping that can’t be planted in winter, a driveway that can’t be paved in freezing temperatures, exterior painting delayed by rain, or a garage door on back-order.

Structural repairs, roof replacements, foundation work, and plumbing overhauls do not qualify. A property that needs that level of work generally calls for an FHA 203(k) rehabilitation loan rather than a standard closing with an escrow holdback.

Direct Endorsement lenders approve the escrow arrangement, and the HUD Field Office tracks completion of the deferred items once the closing documents arrive.¹

The Five Parts and Where Each One Goes

Form 92300 is a five-part carbonless form, and each copy has its own destination.²

Part 1 is the original for the HUD case binder, sent to the HUD Field Office after closing.
Part 2 is the HUD tickler file copy, also sent to HUD. If Part 4 doesn’t arrive by the completion date, HUD returns Part 2 to the lender as a follow-up notice.
Part 3 is the mortgagee’s copy, kept in the lender’s loan file.
Part 4 is the HUD completion copy, sent to the Field Office after the work is done, inspected, and the escrow funds disbursed. It carries a certification that a lender representative personally inspected the property.
Part 5 is the mortgagee’s completion copy, an identical completion certification the lender keeps.

Parts 1 through 3 are filled out at closing. Parts 4 and 5 come later, once the deferred work is finished.

Filling Out the Form at Closing

The top of the form asks for the FHA case number assigned to the loan and the property address. Below that, the lender enters the legal description and an itemized list of every unfinished task, with a reason for each deferral. Be specific. “Landscaping” is too vague; “install front-yard sod and three shrubs per appraisal requirement, delayed due to frozen ground” gives inspectors a clear checklist later.

Next comes the escrow amount. HUD’s procedures require a minimum of $500 or one and a half times the estimated cost of the deferred item, whichever is greater.¹ A $2,000 driveway job means at least $3,000 in escrow. A $300 estimate still pulls the minimum up to $500. A professional cost estimate for labor and materials usually supports the figure.

The form has a field for the specified completion date, the deadline by which all listed items must be finished. No single universal deadline is written into the form; the lender and the parties set a case-specific date based on when the seasonal or logistical delay is expected to resolve.² A landscaping escrow opened in December might carry a May or June completion date.

An authorized lender representative signs and dates the form. That signature commits the lender to holding the escrow funds in a special custodial bank account separate from its general assets, and to personally inspecting the completed work before releasing any money.²

A blank copy of the form is available on HUD’s forms page at hud.gov, or you can request one from your mortgage lender.³

Submitting the Form With the Case Binder

After closing, the lender sends Parts 1 and 2 to the HUD Field Office as part of the case binder, the full closing package that supports FHA mortgage insurance endorsement. The case binder must reach the HUD Homeownership Center within 60 days of the closing date.⁴ Incorrect or missing data on the insurance application can result in a denial of insurance and the binder being returned to the lender.

The insurance application captures three escrow-related data points from the form: the escrow amount, the escrow completion date, and a reference to Form 92300.⁴ Those figures have to match what’s on the signed form. The escrow is typically noted on the Closing Disclosure as well, connecting the settlement to the holdback.

Finishing the Work and Releasing the Escrow

Once the deferred items are done, a lender representative must personally inspect the property and confirm every listed item was completed to a satisfactory standard. The lender also needs evidence that no liens or potential liens are attached to the improvements. Paid invoices from contractors and material suppliers usually satisfy that requirement.²

For newly constructed homes or properties where a separate compliance inspection was ordered, inspectors use HUD Form 92051, the Compliance Inspection Report, to certify that the dwelling meets FHA construction standards and that any deficiencies have been corrected.⁵

After the inspection clears, the lender completes Parts 4 and 5. Part 4 goes to the HUD Field Office as soon as the work is done, inspected, and the funds disbursed. Part 5 stays in the lender’s file.² Any escrow balance remaining after the work is paid for goes back to the party who deposited the funds.

If the Work Isn’t Finished on Time

Missing the completion date has real consequences, and they fall on the lender. HUD holds the lender responsible for getting the work done regardless of whether the borrower, builder, or contractor caused the delay. If the escrow runs short, the lender covers the difference out of its own funds.¹ The form is blunt: the lender must take whatever action it considers necessary, including supplemental agreements, to make sure the work gets done, even when the original escrow falls short.²

When Part 4 doesn’t arrive by the completion date, HUD returns Part 2, the tickler copy, to the lender as a reminder. Repeated failures to close out escrow accounts can draw scrutiny of a lender’s Direct Endorsement authority.

Penalties for False Statements

Submitting false information on Form 92300 or any other federal housing document carries serious risk. Under 18 U.S.C. § 1001, knowingly making a materially false statement to a federal agency is punishable by a fine and up to five years in prison.⁶ HUD can also pursue civil penalties under the Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act, which allows per-claim penalties plus an assessment of twice the amount of the fraudulent claim.⁷ Inflated cost estimates, fabricated completion inspections, and misrepresentations about the condition of the property are the conduct these statutes target.

1
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD Handbook 4145.1 REV-2 – Escrow Procedures
2
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD Form 92300 – Mortgagee’s Assurance of Completion
3
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD Forms
4
Reginfo.gov. Endorsing a Single Family FHA Case
5
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD Form 92051 – Compliance Inspection Report
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 18 Section 1001
7
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Default Judgment and Order – Avis Brown