FHA Guidelines for 2 to 4 Unit Properties
Short answer
Yes. FHA buys duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes at the same 3.5 percent down as a house.
You have to live in one of the units for a year.
On a duplex, that's the whole catch.
In 2026 a Florida fourplex runs anywhere from $1,041,125 to $1,904,150, depending on the county.
Yours is one specific number.
On a three or four unit there's a second rule, and it's the one that ends most of these deals. The building's rent, including the unit you'll live in, counted at no more than 75 percent, has to cover the full monthly payment with taxes and insurance before anyone looks at your income.
Read that sentence again, because it's the good news. That test is run against the property, not against you. A building either passes or it doesn't, and your credit has nothing to do with it. The rest of this page is how the math actually works, and if you would rather just talk it through, that call takes under ten minutes and you get the answer the same day.
| Down payment | 3.5% with a 580 or higher credit score |
|---|---|
| Living there | You live in one unit for at least a year |
| Self-sufficiency test | 3 and 4 units only |
| Rent counted for the test | No more than 75% of the appraiser's rent estimate, all units including yours |
| To pass | That rent covers the full payment: principal, interest, taxes, insurance and mortgage insurance |
| Cash reserves | 3 months of payments on a 3 or 4 unit |
Yes, FHA will finance a duplex, triplex or fourplex with 3.5% down, as long as you live in one of the units. Rent from the other units can count toward your income, and 3 and 4 unit buildings have to pass one extra test that trips up a lot of buyers. Here is how HUD Handbook 4000.1 handles each piece.
Can I buy a two to four unit?
Do I still put 3.5 percent down?
FHA asks for the same 3.5% down payment on a 2, 3 or 4 unit home that it asks on a single-family house.
Do I have to live there?
You have to live in one of the units as your main home. FHA won't finance a building you only plan to rent out.
Can the rent help me qualify?
75% of the market rent from the units you won't live in can be added to your income when you qualify.
What is the self-sufficiency test?
On a 3 or 4 unit building, the rent has to cover the full mortgage payment on its own. Duplexes are exempt.
Which unit do I have to live in?
Any one of them. FHA doesn't care which unit is yours, only that you actually live in the building. If you don't plan to move in, FHA isn't the right loan for that purchase.
How soon do I have to move in?
At least one borrower has to move in within 60 days of closing and plan to live there for at least a year.
Since you only live in one unit, the others can be rented from day one. After a year you can usually move out, rent your unit too, and buy your next home. A second FHA loan while you still own the first comes with its own rules, so talk that through before you count on it.
Can I count rent I haven't collected yet?
Yes. Your paycheck doesn't have to cover the whole mortgage by itself. The lender can add projected rent from the units you won't live in to your qualifying income, even if nobody is renting them yet.
How is the market rent determined?
The appraiser sets it. On a 2 to 4 unit home the appraisal report (Fannie Mae Form 1025) includes a rent survey that compares your units with similar rentals nearby, and that estimate is what the lender works from. Signed leases aren't required.
Why do you only count part of the rent?
FHA assumes units will sit empty now and then and need repairs, so it takes 25% off the rent for vacancy and maintenance before counting it.
- Example: if the appraiser says the other unit rents for $2,000 a month, $1,500 of it ($2,000 x 0.75) is added to your monthly income.
What is the rule that kills most 3 and 4 unit deals?
It's called the self-sufficiency test, and it only applies to 3 and 4 unit properties. If you're buying a duplex, you can skip this section.
What does self-sufficient actually mean?
It means the building has to pay for itself on paper. HUD counts rent for every unit, yours included, and that rent alone has to cover the full monthly payment. Your salary plays no part in this test.
How is that test calculated?
The lender takes the appraiser's market rent for every unit, including the one you'll live in, and runs three steps.
- Step 1: Add up the market rent for all 3 or 4 units.
- Step 2: Multiply the total by 75% to allow for vacancy.
- Step 3: Compare the result with the full monthly payment: principal, interest, taxes, insurance, FHA mortgage insurance and any HOA dues.
If step 2 comes in even a few dollars under the payment, the building fails and FHA won't insure the loan. Where taxes and insurance run high, plenty of triplexes and fourplexes fail on those two lines alone, so run the test before you make an offer, not after.
Multi-unit requirements at a glance
Looking at a duplex or a fourplex?
Send us the listing before you write an offer. We'll run the rent numbers and the self-sufficiency test on that exact building so you know where you stand.
The call takes about ten minutes, with no application and no credit pull to get started.
Start your FHA pre-approvalAAA Capital Funding, Inc. NMLS #374739
If the rent is what makes a 2 to 4 unit work for you, have an independent FHA mortgage broker check the numbers before you sign a contract.
Thinking about a duplex, triplex or fourplex?
Self sufficiency is where most of these die, and it dies at the property, not at you. A building either carries its own payment on the rent roll or it doesn't, and that has nothing to do with your credit.
Call 888-601-8344 before you write an offer and we'll look at the building together. Under ten minutes, and you get the answer the same day. No application, no credit pull.
Text 954-816-8820 if that's easier.
AAA Capital Funding, Inc. · NMLS #374739 · Jason J. Sarji, NMLS #374700