1 year primary residence rule same for FHA and conventional?

[Steven S.]

Hey Everyone,

I am getting very close to the point where I can refi out of my FHA loan on my primary residence into a conventional mortgage to get rid of my PMI.

Once I do that I would like to make my primary a rental and look for a multifamily I can house hack.

My question is, do typical conventional loans have the same rules as FHA when it comes to renting the property? Would I have to live in my primary another year after refinancing before I could make it a rental?

Also, has anyone moved multiple times to take advantage of the lower down payment requirements? I do not want to overleverage myself, but I wouldn't care if I bounced around for a few years house hacking different multi-families if it means growing my portfolio that much faster.

[Albert Bui]

Originally posted by @Steven S.:

Hey Everyone,

I am getting very close to the point where I can refi out of my FHA loan on my primary residence into a conventional mortgage to get rid of my PMI.

Once I do that I would like to make my primary a rental and look for a multifamily I can house hack.

My question is, do typical conventional loans have the same rules as FHA when it comes to renting the property? Would I have to live in my primary another year after refinancing before I could make it a rental?

Also, has anyone moved multiple times to take advantage of the lower down payment requirements? I do not want to overleverage myself, but I wouldn't care if I bounced around for a few years house hacking different multi-families if it means growing my portfolio that much faster.

on government loans you do sign a commitment form that you intend to live in the property for min of 12 months (VA and FHA).

Its not the same way with conventional however it does say that you intend to live there as a primary residence. So the amount of time you live there will depend on your ethical and moral lines. I think the safe rule of thumb for conventional is min 6 months  to get another primary residence loan however some underwriters will want a really good letter of explanation and maybe supporting evidence that supports a reason to purchase another primary residence in such a short period of time.

You also can have a second FHA loan if you fall into one of the 4 areas of exceptions 1) relocation 2) larger family/size 3) cosignor on another fha loan 4) or divorce where exspouse remains in the FHA financed property. If you have one of these 4 scenarios you can get another FHA loan as long as its sufficiently documented.

or you can wait 6 months + to get another conventional loan if situation/loan scenario permits.