Is it possible to get 5% down conventional loan on a primary residence duplex? if so are they any lenders that you all would recommend in the Atlanta metro area?
Yes you should have no problem finding a lender that'll do a conventional loan with 5% down. I started the pre-approval process with a few lenders this week and they all offered loans with 5% down. One even offered as little as 3% down if you don't exceed the income maximum. Certainty Home Loans and Homestar Loans are two lenders that were recommended to me. I'm new to real estate so I can't say too much about them but so far, they've both been good to work with. The Fannie Mae HomeStyle Loan is another type that I know only requires 5% down, seems to be a pretty common option around the city as well. I'd also look into First Time Home Buyer Programs like "Invest Atlanta" or "Georgia Dream", might be something they offer that works for you.
Yes you should have no problem finding a lender that'll do a conventional loan with 5% down. I started the pre-approval process with a few lenders this week and they all offered loans with 5% down. One even offered as little as 3% down if you don't exceed the income maximum. Certainty Home Loans and Homestar Loans are two lenders that were recommended to me. I'm new to real estate so I can't say too much about them but so far, they've both been good to work with. The Fannie Mae HomeStyle Loan is another type that I know only requires 5% down, seems to be a pretty common option around the city as well. I'd also look into First Time Home Buyer Programs like "Invest Atlanta" or "Georgia Dream", might be something they offer that works for you.
@Account Closed Hey Thanks, I literally just finished an application with Certainly Home loans. Hopefully all goes well. My previous lender said I had to put 15% down on an owner-occupied duplex because its riskier compared to a single-family home, from the lender's point of view. Thanks for the resources.
I got a quote from Certainty Home Loans this week for a duplex. They used the Freddie Mac Home Possible Program, 5% down payment. I did a little more research and unfortunately, the Fannie Mae Programs (Home Ready, Home Style, etc) actually do require a 15% down payment for a duplex, 25% down for a triplex or quadplex. I also confirmed that you can't use the First Time Home Buyer Programs I mentioned on multi-family properties. So to answer the original question, Freddie Mac Home Possible is the only 5% down conventional loan that can be used on a duplex that I've been able to find.
@Account Closed Yup you're 100% right I did a lot of digging as well. The only downside of Home Possible is some areas have income limits. By chance, did they tell you how long you will have to live in this property to satisfy this loan product? for example, FHA requires the borrower to live in the property for at least one year.
@Jason Terrelonge I know the Home Possible Loan is for primary residences only so I'd imagine the occupancy requirement would be the same as the FHA. I did not get told that explicitly though.