Novice looking for direction

Disclaimer- I am just starting this ‘journey,’ so I apologize if I can’t provide any more concrete #'s than I do and the ?'s seem inane. I’m just looking for advice and there seems to be a wealth of knowledge here. This also might get kind of long, but I’ll need to provide some detail and my circumstances.

OK…I am in the middle of a separation, which hopefully will be settled soon. We’ll sell the house in a few months when the 2 years of ownership is up, and I plan on moving to Virginia. Still unsure where exactly but Roanoke and Winchester are appealing, Roanoke moreso for what I’m thinking of doing there.

Add to the situation, I was about to open a business after getting everything lined up, which of course has taken 10 times longer than planned. I’m writing off the business, just so I can get out of here. But due to the fact that I’ve been awaiting the grand opening of the business, training, securing financing, construction/zoning issues, permitting, bidding equipment suppliers and everything in between, I haven’t worked full-time in over 2 years. A few part-time jobs, but I had planned for the worst, and had plenty of savings to hold me over during all the agonizing delays.

When we bought this house I wasn’t working either, but had about 150k set aside and my wife was working earning about 30k/year. We had no trouble securing a loan and I put 20% down, loan amount for 168k(purchase price $210k). I’m guessing because it was a 1 to 1 loan and my wife was working it was pretty easy. House appraised for way more than purchase price. I also secured a business loan for $200k with little problem, using the house as collateral, which I never closed on and have made the bank aware that the deal is dead, thanks to the impending divorce and consequent sale of said collateral (even though very surprisingly the underwriter said he still could get it to go through. I just want to be done with it and move on.)

Fast forward to present day. After our settlement, I should have about 125k cash that I want to use for real estate. Here is where I need direction.

How hard is it going to be to secure a loan on my own, not having had a full-time income for so long? I don’t know my FICO, but plan on getting it once this mess is over with and I start actually moving on this. It must be fairly decent, to have gotten the previous loans. My wife’s income wasn’t high, and she had no assets, and her credit stunk.

And here’s another pickle: I’m interested in trying the fair-play method of apartment buying/selling. There are several properties in a city I’m looking at moving to in Va. that look like they have potential, and would fit into my price range for starting out. I’d like to do this full-time and manage my property, which would of course leave the annual income line blank on my loan app.

Questions: Should I get a job and do that part-time to increase my chances of being approved, if it’s going to be a problem? I’m obviously going to start small, and was even thinking of finding a duplex/quad and living in one for the first property, although there are properties up to 12 units I should be able to afford(IF I can get a loan.)
Should I buy my own residence first, then worry about investment properties? I’ve heard I should, but why or why not? Would I even be able to get a second loan for an 80%LTV for a MFU (I plan on putting 20% down on my primary residence as well.)

I guess summarized: *Should I be able to qualify for a loan with 20% down and about 90k left in liquid assets and an above average FICO with no job?

  • Should I focus on a duplex/quad and live in one until I sell it and then worry about larger MFU’s?
  • Optimistically, could I purchase a house, then expect to possibly also qualify for an 80%LTV for a MFU?
    *Should I just forget the whole thing, get a job and buy a house down the road and live a normal life, which I’ve done and hated?

For what it’s worth, I’m looking at a very large duplex for 279900 asking price, SFH of around 210000 and MFU of around $300000+. These figures are subject to change as I get closer to actually moving, in 3 months and are representative of the middle of the road around there.

I know this sounds like a mess, but any advice, suggestions, direction etc… to get me started is extremely appreciated. PLEASE let me know if I can provide any addtl. info; I know this was scant, and am not sure what details are needed. Thanks for taking the time to read this!
Michael

no doc loans! Doesn’t state any employment, income, assets etc. Rates are higher though as you would imagine. For owner occ. properties you can get 100% loan with a 680fico No doc, 80%ltv with 620fico. For non-owner no doc 90%ltv with a 620fico is the best ive seen available…These are all for residential 4units and under ofcourse…

You just brightened my weekend. :smiley:
How do no doc loans work? What kind of interest rate are we talking, if you’re not providing income, assets, exployment, etc… It seems like that would be so risky for the lender the rate would have to be off the charts, especially with a 90 or 100 ltv. What’s the guarantee for the lender? The actual property, I guess.
In that case, wouldn’t it be more prudent to put 20% down, to avoid pmi and reduce the cost of borrowing that $. I’m all for using opm, but if the rates are going to be astronomical, wouldn’t the equity be better in the property than earning a subrate somewhere else?

Also, how is the amount I would be able to borrow calculated? I know you’d need more personal financial info, although my finances aren’t complicated- when all is said and done, I’ll be starting out with no debt whatsoever and $125k cash, and about $50k in other not-so-liquid assets which wouldn’t matter much to a lender.
What’s it based on with a no doc loan? It would be great if I could get an idea of what price range to be looking in as I start this, as I’m sitting in idle right now.

Thanks so much for your help and response-that takes a load off.

Zachary(and whoever else)-again thanks for the help. I decided to actually do research myself on no doc loans(imagine) and they look great, and I’ve spoken with loan officers before about them and hadn’t realized it. They’re perfect, and I have a great relationship with a lender who specializes in them!
Hopefully we’ll get this mess settled soon so I can qualify and get this show on the road.
Thanks again!

ok glad you got all your questions cleared up. You can contact me directly for further info and I specialize in those loans as well…