Depends on how you present it to your lender. It’s a big gray area, but the letter of the law would say that you’re likely committing mortgage fraud. And I promise my intent is not to be a jerk.
If you go through traditional lending channels, here is what Fannie Mae calls a second home:
-Must be occupied by the borrower for some portion of the year
-Is restricted to one-unit dwellings
-Borrower must have exclusive control over the property
-Must not be a rental property or timeshare arrangement
-Cannot be subject to any agreements that give a management firm control over the occupancy of the property
So... CAN you do it as a second home? Probably. Just be careful and decide if it’s worth the risk and if you can live with it. The half point difference in rate is less than $100 per month most likely.
August26th, just for fun, I made up some numbers and fed them to Google. This a very simplified example, but it makes the point. Mustachians do
not spend an extra ~ $100 more a month for thirty years on anything without serious contemplation.
The interest on $200k @ 4% will be $143,739.
The interest on $200k @ 4.5% will be $164,813.
The difference of 1/2 point over 30 years? $21,074.
Please note, I am not suggesting hiding anything from anyone, but if your lender is willing to do this with full disclosure (as ours was), why the hell not?
