Investment Property - New Hampshire

[Jonathan Bonney]

Hey BiggerPockets Members,

First things first, much appreciation and respect for everyone who has shared their real estate endeavors with all, the good, the bad, and the ugly!  And of course, many thanks to Josh and Brandon for the hours of entertainment and education in the Podcast library. 

It has been about a little over a year since I became aware of BiggerPockets and made my first purchase around the same time. Now looking back, I realize how great a deal we really got from value/purchase price, location (East Boston), and financing.  That being said, after revisiting with the mortgage lender that I worked with previously, it is apparently not going to be so "easy" on the second acquisition.  

As my wife and I evaluate our options for purchasing another property, we have discussed potentially owner occupying (2/3 family) or a straight up investment property. With 20% or 25% down being likely (would rather not have to deal with PMI), we look to markets outside of Boston to accommodate our price point and lifestyle. Nashua and/or Southern New Hampshire is a consideration that we are evaluating.

Has anyone out there had recent experience in obtaining an investment loan either in those markets or general? I have gone through the owner occupied loan process for a 2 family and am making some assumptions based on that experience and some other information that I have been told. Apparently we will need a minimum of 25% down and the lender that approved us for our current property, used 75% of fair market rental value, further reduced by allowable DTI of about 41%. My assumption is that the underwriter for an investment loan would treat our current rental income and prospective similarly to our previous experience. By the time we identify our next property, we should have 2 years of documented rental income w/very little vacancy. Are investment property loans being funded right now w/25% down or are people having to go 30-35% to get the deal done? I have good credit, 6 months reserve on both properties, a decent salary but, would be needing the rental income to qualify, as my wife is home with our two little ones.

I would appreciate any input that you are willing to give in the way of your perspective/experience with trying to obtain financing for buy and hold investment loans. Also, any input or information you have about the Nashua/Manchester markets, would also be helpful.