All Forum Posts by: Tom Schneider

Sounds like it's an idea worth pursuing, time to make some phone calls to lenders! Thanks for the input.

Thanks for the responses so far!

@Connor Dunham, I like the idea about Airbnb with my current unit-- it is located near downtown, so a bit different market, but I'm sure I'll learn plenty about the management side of short term rentals. I've also been in touch with a friend who owns a vacation rental home on the same lake I'm looking at, about 1.5 hrs drive from where I'm currently located. His property is significantly larger than what I'm considering, but getting some good information nonetheless.

When it comes to the "upgrade" side of things, does a change in location make a difference? EG, if I was living at a SFH 60+ miles outside town, while owning a fully rented 4plex in town, would buying into a triplex (or some other sort of upgrade from the 4plex) make the cut because the SFH is in another area?

There is no "second home" for work-- the mining operation runs its own "camp" where I live while on site. Think company provided dormitories/barracks. My current property--the 4plex-- would be completely vacated by me when moving on, with a new renter in place of me.

Thanks for the response! I should have specified, the SFH would be a non-FHA mortgage, and yes, if I don't end up refinancing this FHA mortgage I will be in it at least a year to meet that requirement.

Hi All,

Wanted to introduce myself to the BP community-- I've been a longtime lurker here but have only recently started posting, and have been amazed by the wealth of information to be found!

A bit about me: I'm an engineer in the mining industry by trade, originally from southern CA but have migrated my way across the country to eventually land in Alaska, working outside Fairbanks but living down in Anchorage when not at work. I recently closed on my first property-- a 4plex picked up using an FHA mortgage near downtown Anchorage. I finished flipping the first unit a week ago, and I'm moving right along to getting the other 3 completed! Going forward I am looking to move into more multi-family rentals and potentially into flips. I'm finding that done right, these can be absolute gold mines-- and I would know!

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.