Recent FHA Purchase of Duplex w/ Inherited Tenants

[Joy Hardegree]

We just bought our very first property on Feb 24th with an FHA loan that requires us to take up residence in the property within 60 days and live there for at least a year. This property is a duplex with inherited tenants. One tenant (We'll say tenant B) is month-to-month... we want to keep him and his 2 teenagers. The other tenant (call him Tenant A) has a lease until May 31st and is a young single guy... we want to occupy A's side, and have offered him a cash-for-keys contract to be out by April 23rd so that we can meet our FHA requirement of occupying within 60 days. We told him he has until March 23rd to accept this deal in writing because, if he doesn't, we figured we'd gave to boot the family (B) on the other side instead. While Tenant A has indicated via text that he "may have found a place" (and mentioned later in a call that if it doesn't work out he'll have to finish out his lease), he has not signed any kind of agreement specifically accepting our cash-for-keys offer.
We also live in Nashville and just had a tornado rip through several counties (including destroying part of a shopping mall and some neighborhoods 3 miles away). We understand that one or both of these tenants may have trouble finding somewhere else to go. We especially hope to not have to boot the family (B) with everything going on right now because we have reason to believe that they'd have a much harder time finding a place to rent. OUR lease at the apartments we've been living in isn't up until June 23rd, so we're ONLY in a hurry because FHA requires us to be.
I see on here that evictions have been suspended at least through April.

What we're seeking advice on is- should we get in touch proactively with our lender and see if they can suspend our move-in requirement until the pandemic has settled down, so as not to displace our tenants amidst society screeching to a halt? Or should we just try to boot one and then, what... collect no rent if they have nowhere to go because evictions are suspended? Could we say nothing to the lender, allow month-to-month Tenant B to stay, and then hope that Tenant A voluntarily moves out at the end of his original lease without the lender realizing we failed to meet the 60-day move-in stipulation due to the circumstances? We want to do the right thing all the way around in a way that hopefully doesn't screw anyone.
Thoughts? Experiences? Legal knowledge? Suggestions?
Thanks in advance!

[Bryan O.]

You aren't "booting" anyone. In my mind that term means evicting. So far neither tenant can be evicted because they are following their lease. You made a very silly agreement (closing before you have a legal ability to move in). I am kind of curious how your loan officer didn't push back since you have no legal ability to occupy unless Tenant B is on a month-to-month or expiring soon. Is Tenant B at the end of their lease? You kept saying "boot" but you have to honor whatever leases were in place if they don't sign up for something else and they are not able to be evicted for now.

When I did mine, no one came to validate anything. I would recommend you change over utilities and whatever else can be into your name for whichever unit you will actually occupy. That way you can at least prove intent. I am going to guess that no one will notice or care with everything going on right now. The bank probably has plenty of defaulting loans on their hands and won't care much about the loan that is paying and might or might not be owner-occupied.