I am facing SO many hurdles during the refinance process!

[Jobee Vincent Buenaventura]

Hey all,

I’m not sure if it’s because of COVID or the current housing market in general in NJ/NY, but I am having such a tough time getting this to work. I purchased my first property, a two-family back in September 2020.

First, my loan officer told me as of early April, Fannie Mae and such has been cutting back in adopting cash-out refinance loans from lenders by a large percentage, making refinancing second home/investment properties much harder. So I inquired about a personal refinance and live in the property for a year before buying another primary residence.

Second, I was told that I cannot get 80% LTV unless I go for an FHA loan on a 2-family property. So that PMI will definitely make an impact on my net profit. And if I go conventional, it'll max out at 75% LTV in which the cash-out isn't significant enough.

And third, I just learned this today: In order for me to be able to qualify for a FHA cash-out refi, I have to own the property for at least a year, meaning no longer the 6-month "seasoning period" if going FHA.

Is there any other options that I can do? I feel like I’ve got a brick wall..