Do I have to physically live in a Property purchases with a FHA Loan

[Jeffrey Hall]

Hi! I work at a university and my job covers my housing - so live on campus in an apartment for free. If I use a FHA loan for my first ever deal, do I physically have to live in the house? I was hoping to just claim the house as my primary address, continue to live in my apartment on campus, and rent out all 3 rooms of the property. Thanks for any advice!

[David Atis]

Sounds like you're trying to pull off the ultimate landlord life hack, but FHA isn't quite that flexible. The deal with FHA loans is simple: they'll give you up with a low down payment, but in return, you have to genuinely live in the property as your primary residence for at least a year.

That said, since your campus apartment is free, why not think of this as your "semi-dual residence era"? Move into the FHA property, make it official, and still spend some nights at your campus apartment when it's convenient. Just be sure you're legitimately living at the FHA property most of the time, that's the key to not committing loan fraud, and you can still rent out 2 rooms.

Alternatively, you might want to explore a conventional loan. Less red tape and you could rent out all the rooms right away if you purchase this as an investment property with 15% down.

Either way, you’re in a solid position with your free housing perk, time to play the long game and set yourself up for future wins. Keep the property long term, building your real estate portfolio. Perhaps down the road you can start to flip distressed properties and keep them as long term rentals! Good luck!