Refi-ed out of fha mortgage/ new fha purchase

[Joshua Costa]

hey guys, 

So I just refinanced out of my fha mortgage into a owner occupied conventional.  Now I’m looking to purchase another 3-4 family in the same area using another fha. The loan officer I worked with on the refi said I may need to wait up to a year after the refi and still present a reason for wanting to move and gain another fha mortgage.  He said I may be able to get one with another company but the underwriter may stop me.  I’m trying to avoid wasting money on appraisals and inspection to only have an underwriter say no. Not sure if it makes a difference but I’m located in Rhode Island.  

Thank you guys. 

[Anthony Thompson]

@Joshua Costa it's not clear what your question is, but I'm assuming you're asking if there's a way to buy another property with FHA sooner, despite what your mortgage guy said.

Since it's a Federal program (FHA), the fact that it's in R.I. doesn't affect anything.

I think you could/should ask the question of another mortgage person but I’d be prepared for the answer to be the same.

I also always recommend building relationships with local banks and credit unions who hold onto their loans (portfolio lenders), like Pawtucket Credit Union, Navigant, Washington Trust, Coastway (now Harbor One) etc.

Often down payment requirements are a little higher, but not always, and you get a lot more variation/flexibility because they set their own terms for the loans - they’re not reselling them on the secondary market so the loans don’t have to fit into a rigid box (be “conforming” in mortgage-speak).

I think it's worth exploring, especially to start building long term banking relationships which will help when you buy more properties, but you may still find FHA is the best deal - it's hard to compete with the Federal government :)

I did a little research and it seems you’re mortgage person might be right, but I still think you will learn a lot from checking with another source and especially meeting local lenders.