Yes most owner occupied is a minimum 1 yr living in residence.

Wanted to ask the experienced guy's here what do you usually do when purchasing a property that is mostly occupied but looking to do a value add to increase rents?

Owner occupied properties at taxed at 4% however, tenant occupied units are taxed at 6%.

There are a few ways to go about it:Find a house in your price range with as many rooms as possible and rent out all the roomsRepeat option one but find a house that could be converted into two units - you occupy one unit and rent out the other unitIf you can find a house to convert into two units, you might want to look into the short-term rental rules in your area to increase your cashflow even more :) 

So I guess in "theory" you could work a BRRRR on a duplex that you occupy but I might caution that it's probably not feasible at this current time. 

What about a 5% down conventional, considering it will be owner occupied 

If you are a US citizen then there shouldn't be too many issues as it is standard non-owner occupied loan.

Large structural things like a roof are 27.5 year- and only 50% will qualify if you occupy 1/2 the property.

When my orders conclude, I would rent out the portion of the duplex I was occupying.  

Hey all,My wife and I bought a property that we intended to occupy for 1 year but due to circumstances need to move but are willing to let it sit open until the 1 year mark.