Unusual Owner Occupied Status--Need Help!

[Tom Schneider]

I recently closed on a 4Plex in Anchorage, AK, using an FHA mortgage. I'm in the process of completing renovations and upgrades, and by the time I'm finished I expect to have just over 20% equity in the property. I'm looking ahead to my next move, but have an unusual situation to contend with: my day job as an engineer is with a remote mining operation, where I work 4 weeks at a time and then return home for 2 weeks. This poses a few challenges while also giving me a few opportunities.

What I'm considering now is to:

1. Refinance the FHA mortgage into a conventional mortgage-- owner occupied or investor. I will be living in the property during the refinance, but I'm not sure for how long I would stay.

2. Purchase a lakefront SFH outside the city as a new primary residence, rent out the home as a vacation rental during periods when I am working (while still maintaining it as my sole residence). I do not expect to make any net returns on this property, only to defray my own costs.

3. Eventually move back to the city and into another 4plex, using an FHA mortgage.

My questions are:

1. Would a conventional refinance tie me to remaining an owner occupant in my current 4plex for a longer period? I'm not intending to move the month after refinancing or anything, but are there any hard limits on this or is it lender dependent?

2. How would a conventional mortgage lender look at my use of the SFH? As it would be my only residence while not away at the mine site, is that enough to consider it an owner occupied, or would the vacation rental use while I am away push it to an investment category?

3. How would it change if I "house hacked" a property with a detached guest house/in law apartment? These are fairly common and, as a bachelor, would make an ideal area for me to reserve for personal use while the main home sees both personal and rental use.

4. Would there be any concerns in moving back to Anchorage at a later point and into a 4plex, from a mortgage point of view? I don't know what the timeline would be on this-- likely at least 2 years after moving into the SFH.

Thanks for your inputs, I'm hoping that by thinking of the options now I'll have a better idea of where I want to head when the time comes.

[Connor Dunham]

Hi Tom. 

Here are some ideas for you: research what Airbnb's go for in your area using airdna.co market reports for your zip code. Sometimes it makes sense in our market, sometimes it doesn't with the service fee and bed taxes. Try out your airbnb idea with your current unit before going and buying a SFH for that purpose to see if you like the business and to help set up the systems you will need while running it remotely from camp. FHA has a requirement that you are "upgrading" everytime you purchase. Whether you need more bedrooms or more square footage or a garage, or you want a shorter commute. So, going from a SFH to a 4-plex without getting divorced or something would be a tough sell to the underwriter. Ideally, try to plan your progression like 4-plex -> Triplex -> Duplex -> SFH. Additionally, you may find that the FHA requirements and upfront PMI puts an undue cost on the transaction and are better off just setting up a HELOC after refinancing into the conventional on your first property, then using the HELOC to fund 10 to 15% of the next transaction.