I'm currently renting, but I want to buy and owner-occupy a 2-4 unit in Chicago (city proper) when my lease expires. The kinds of properties I'm looking at are usually around $1M, and while I could afford a 20% down payment, I don't want to tie up so much of my assets in that kind of purchase. Given that, I'm hoping to something closer to a 10% down payment and just take a hit in the property's cash flow from the bigger payment/interest rate.
I should also say that I really would like to avoid paying PMI, and I know that this isn't a total pipe dream since at least one company offers that for 10% mortgages for employees of the company I work for (more on this below).
However, while I haven't gone through the preapproval process yet, I don't see this kind of deal advertised anywhere, and I've been searching for a bit (albeit only on the internet). I'd love to hear thoughts on whether what I'm looking for is realistic, or whether I should just go through a preapproval process with a few lenders to get a better sense of what I'm likely going to be able to afford.
Things going in my favor:
1. the properties I'm looking at are in good neighborhoods (probably A neighborhoods) and have decent cash flow, so lower chance of vacancy/catastrophe
2. I have good income from a big tech company ($~200K, though about a third of that is bonuses and equity). The big tech company part is relevant since they already have relationships and perks with some lenders, and this might help my application stand out more
3. About $500K in assets (some of it 401k but a decent amount more liquid than that)
4. As noted above, I'm a first-time homeowner and would occupy one of the units in the residence, so it's not purely an investment property
5. 800+ credit rating
Things working against me:
1. It seems to be unusual to ask for 10% down on a loan value of $~1M, maybe more, for a property that isn't a single-family home
2. A bunch of the compensation mentioned above is bonus and equity, but has been constant for about 2 years
Curious for any/all reactions, happy to answer questions.