Need help in Understanding if there are any Holes in My Plan

[Dave Price]

Hello All,

This my first post here and I would love some feedback from you all on my plan.  

I've been doing a lot of research on here the last few weeks reading other's posts and replies and I put a plan together for my wife and I to buy our second home that we eventually want to turn into a Short Term Rental.

Our current situation:

We have been living in Europe the last 6 months for my work and plan to be here a total of 3 yrs. We own 1 home back in AZ and have it currently rented long term.  We plan to have it rented for all 3 yrs that we are away.

I have excellent credit (Mortgage FICO scores in the 790-815 range) and a good stable income ($120k yearly) with no debt other than mortgage.

Plan:

Upon our return to AZ in 2023, we would like to purchase a second home as our primary residence. Our eventual plan would be to make that second home a short term rental on AIRBnb/VRBO.

I would like to pay the least amount down on this second home so my plan is to go FHA First Time Home Buyer 3.5% Down route. Might go conventional with 5% down if the PMI on FHA is too high. The reason I want a low down payment is I would like to use the capital I have to put 20-25% down on our 3rd home that we would like to purchase within two years of the second to also STR/LTR it.

Questions:

Since my first home at the time of my return in 2023 would have been rented out for 3 yrs can I assume that the mortgage payment for that home will not count against my DTI ratio since I can prove it has been rented for 3 yrs and I plan to keep it under rent?

Will I have a problem justifying the second home as being our primary based off my first one being leased for the last 3 years at that time and while I'm applying for the second one? 

Will I qualify as a First Time Buyer under FHA rules since at that point I technically have not purchased a home in 5 yrs and have not lived in my currently owned home in 3 yrs?

If I refinance my mortgage on my current home this year would that reset the counter on when the last time I bought a home to the refi date/timing instead of when we actually bought the home almost 3 years ago? 

Thanks in advance for your feedback!....Dave