Help with DTI breakdownn

[Nathan Huyett]

My wife and I have started looking for a new primary residence. I hold the mortgage for our three-unit property; my wife holds the mortgage for our current home. When speaking with a lender, he indicated that if I take a loss on the rental, the income would not count, which would obviously increase my DTI dramatically. Any suggestions on how to maximize the write-offs on the rental, while still having the income count?