About 18 months ago, my husband and I signed a contract on a loft that was to be built in downtown Tempe, Arizona.  $5k earnest money locked in our price way back then.  The progress on the building has been slow but sure, and that’s perfectly fine with us.  The longer it takes the better, so we can capture all that appreciation during the build-out time. 

We can assign the contract on the loft if we want to, but we’ve since decided we will move into it.  Moving into it will allow us to get into zero-down financing with an owner occupied loan.  We found a new loan program through our broker that allows a pay option ARM with 100% financing!  We just re-financed the primary home we’re in now and will rent it out when we make the move.  We’ll positively cash flow it without a problem.  Actually, we’re considering leaving our home vacant for several months until our would-be 2 years has passed so that when we do sell it in a couple of years we can sell it with the gains tax free.  As long as we sell it before a total of 5 years passes, this strategy will work great!