Feeling Stuck - investing DTI affecting personal home purchase - lender input welcome

[Scott Falvey]

I've been doing the "research and analysis" for months now. We currently have two properties. My wife claims one as a primary residence and I claim one as a primary residence and also house hack it so it is also an investment. I was getting ready to take out a HELOC on the "investment" property, alI I needed to do was sign on the dotted line. The bank that offered the HELOC came in with the HELOC at one number, the appraisal came in higher than what we had originally thought it might, so I asked if the HELOC could be increased. The bank said the HELOC amount being offered put me at the top of my DTI even though the appraisal would have given more.

That statement concerned me because we want to purchase another personal home in about a year and because of that statement, I withdrew my HELOC application.

How do I go about investing in properties and keep my DTI down where it has minimal affect on a personal purchase in the future?

My general strategy is to buy and hold, mostly LTR but will probably consider MTR too. Should I make my investment purchases in an LLC and use DSCR loans when owner financing isn't an option.

So, in general, I'm bumping up against my DTI based on my w-2 income. That puts a damper on what we can borrow in the near future for a personal home. How do I keep investing with minimal or no impact to my personal DTI? Let me know if more information is needed.

Thank you