(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, the mortgagor:

(1) Shall be a single asset mortgagor entity acceptable to the Commissioner, as limited by the applicable section of the Act, and shall possess the powers necessary and incidental to operating the project, except that the Commissioner may approve a non-single asset mortgagor entity under such circumstances, terms and conditions determined and specified as acceptable to the Commissioner; and

(2) Shall not be a natural person or tenant in common.

(b)(1) For multifamily project mortgages for which HUD issued a firm commitment for mortgage insurance before September 1, 2011, and for multifamily project mortgages insured under section 232 of the Act (12 U.S.C. 1715w), the mortgagor shall be a natural person or entity acceptable to the Commissioner, as limited by the applicable section of the Act, and shall possess the powers necessary and incidental to operating the project.

(2) For multifamily project mortgages for which HUD issued a firm commitment for mortgage insurance on or after September 1, 2011, the regulations of paragraph (a) of this section shall apply, unless the mortgagor demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Commissioner that financial hardship to the mortgagor would result from application of the regulations in paragraph (a) of this section due to the reasonable expectations of the mortgagor that the transaction would close under the regulations in effect prior to September 1, 2011, in which case, the regulations of paragraph (b)(1) shall apply.