House Hacking while living abroad

[Tomas Nuno]

Hello everybody. I am looking to begin investing by house hacking and am looking for some guidance. A little background info about myself, I currently work outside the U.S. for 9-10 months out of the year and live in California.  

My question is can I purchase a property as a house hack in a different state even if I never actually live in it? My plan would be to stay with family in CA the 2-3 months I am back from work in the U.S. , and have the property 100% rented out for the year. Is this possible since technically the property would still be my primary residence?  

[Dave Meyer]

If you’re not living in it, it’s not a house hack, it’s a regular rental property. As such you should be honest with your lender about your intentions and find a loan accordingly.