I can't pull my money out of my rehab

[Jonathan Stastny]

I have a unique(I think) situation that I could really use some advice on. I currently own two properties(one duplex and one single family.) I've got an FHA loan and am house hacking the duplex. The single family, I have rented for $1625/mo and own it free and clear. I spent about $45k on the rehab and it should appraise between $160-165k.

The problem I have is that before leaving my job, I was working with someone at a bank that told me it would be no problem getting an LOC or mortgage with my stated income from my rentals and Air BNB(about $50k/yr.) Plus I picked up a job bartending nights where I make another 30k. However, when it came time to apply for the loan, I was denied because they won't count any of that income for 24 months. I couldn't even get a 60% LTV against the house that I own free and clear.

My dilemma is that I would like to purchase more properties using the BRRR strategy, but not sure where to go from here other than to wait until I can show 24 months of consistent income. Does anyone have any suggestions that might help me move forward sooner? I'm not super interested in flipping, I'd rather build a portfolio for long term wealth.

[Andrew Postell]

@Jonathan Stastny never go back to that bank ever again.  That experience was totally forseable and it's that's type of guidance that makes everybody hate working with lenders.  Super frustrating that this occured to you and I'm not even involved!

But as suggested above the course of action here is to seek a different lender.  I would suggest posting in the Nebraska forum to see if any local people have some recommendations for you.  You can also try some local real estate groups that meet in the Omaha area.  Bigger Pockets should have some listings for some groups and maybe try meetup.com as well.  

Hope this helps!