Conventional vs. Investment Loans for a Duplex

[Account Closed]

Hi all! Fairly basic question. I am looking at a two unit property that is fully rented, and can't make the numbers work using an FHA loan. I have the capital to put a little more down with a conventional loan (15-20%), but my mortgage lender is telling me that if I am not planning to live there, I would need to put down 25% for an investment style loan. Any ways around this?

I am interested in using this property to house hack down the line, but the property already has two long term tenants and I have no immediate need to move/no living expenses currently. Would love to let these tenants keep paying off the property for the next year or two if possible. Thanks! 

[Scott Johnson]

Quote from @Jason Hirko:

@Account Closed not all deals are worth investing in. If the numbers are already that tight for you, one bad stretch of vacancy or major repairs and you're going to be hurting

This is where I'm at with this. It sounds like you're trying to make a deal work. The problem isn't that you need to make this deal work, it's that you don't have enough deals to choose from. The question then becomes, "how are you looking for deals?" It's important to remember that on the MLS, in a lot of areas, people are bidding things up like crazy. So how can you find more deals that will work best for your portfolio? That's the question.