There are qualifying life events (like getting married) that let you move out before a year, and many other loop holes in the program which investors can legally utilize.

Seller may also have utility deposits? 

Live in one of the units and rent out the rest, this is a great way to get into and learn the rental game, and often live for free (tenants pay your mortgage, utilities, etc), maybe even make some positive cash flow.

They focus only on cash flow, taking into account typical monthly costs such as mortgage, utilities, reserves, capital expenditures, cleaning fees, etc.

@Thomas Vida never ever lie or be dishonest, just tell them exactly how much she pays, any late or NSF payments, complaints etc….

How can I utilize this equity to efficiently purchase more rental properties? 

(They stayed 3 months at $3000/mo including utilities for our $1400+utilities apartment).

Call utilities.

Lucky for me as a SFR Landlord, my Tenant's are responsible for their own electric, natural gas and other utilities.

I also look at the cost of utilities that I have to pay.