I'm Rob McKenney, a veteran-owned mortgage broker based in Milford, and I have a place on the water in Cedarville. So when you call about a lake house, a cabin, a hunting property or a move north for good, I already know the questions that come up: the well, the septic, the road the county doesn't plow, and the appraisal with no comparable sales for twenty miles. I'm licensed throughout Michigan and I shop your loan across multiple wholesale lenders, from the northern Lower Peninsula to the U.P.
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Lenders sort every up-north purchase into one of three buckets, a second home, a primary residence or an investment property, and each one has its own rules. Getting that label right at the start is most of the battle, so this is the first thing we'll talk through.
A second home you'll use yourself. Conventional and jumbo loans finance lake houses and cabins you keep for your own use. Lenders want a one-unit home you'll actually spend time in, that's suitable for year-round use, and that you control rather than a rental company.
Moving north for good. When up north becomes your primary residence, the full menu opens up: conventional, FHA, VA if you're eligible, and USDA in eligible rural areas. Retiring to the lake is a primary-residence purchase, not a second home.
A cabin that pays for itself. If the plan is to rent it out, including short-term rentals, it's an investment property, and a DSCR loan can qualify on the rent instead of your income. Check the township's rental rules before you count on that income.
Using the equity you already have. A HELOC or fixed second on the home you live in now can fund part or all of an up-north purchase without touching the rate on your first mortgage.
Building on your own land. Construction financing covers a new build on a lot you own or are buying, and on many primary-residence programs, one loan carries you from the build to the finished home.
An older seasonal cottage. A three-season cottage on a seasonal road is one of the hardest properties up north to finance. Some won't qualify as they stand, and some can with the right lender or a different structure, so call me before you write the offer.
Second-home financing usually prices better than investment-property financing, so it's tempting to call the cabin a second home and plan to rent it out on the side. Lenders define a second home as a place you live in for part of the year and control yourself, and if a rental program or management company decides who stays there, it's an investment property. Describing occupancy accurately on a mortgage application isn't a technicality, so tell me how you'll really use the place and I'll match it to the loan that fits.
VA, FHA and USDA loans are for the home you live in as your primary residence, so they won't finance a weekend cabin. They can absolutely finance the move when up north becomes home, and that's often the moment people start asking me about them.
Every lender writes its own rules on wells, private roads, acreage, property condition and short-term rentals. The same cabin can get turned down at one lender and approved at another.
I know which lenders are comfortable with rural and waterfront property, and I put yours in front of the ones that want it.
You get one person who knows the property type, not a call center reading a checklist.
None of this is a reason not to buy. These are the things that slow down up-north closings when nobody brings them up early, so we bring them up early.
Wells and septic. Most up-north homes run on a private well and septic system. Some counties and townships require an inspection when a property changes hands, and some loan programs require a water test, but even when nothing is required, test the water and have the septic looked at while you can still walk away.
Getting to the house. Lenders want a home that can be reached year-round. If the road is private or seasonal, expect questions about who maintains and plows it, and a road maintenance agreement can matter. A property you can only reach by boat or snowmobile is a different conversation.
Flood zones on the water. Check the flood map early on any waterfront property. If the home sits in a FEMA high-risk flood zone, the lender will require flood insurance, and the premium is typically collected with your monthly payment.
Appraisals with few comparable sales. Rural and waterfront appraisals often rely on sales from farther away and can take longer to complete. I plan the timeline around that from the start so it doesn't squeeze your closing date.
Acreage and outbuildings. A home on a big parcel, or with a pole barn or other outbuildings, narrows the list of lenders comfortable with the deal. That's a shopping problem, and shopping is my job.
Property taxes on a second home. Michigan caps a property's taxable value until it changes hands, then uncaps it the year after the sale. If the seller lived there full time, they also had the principal residence exemption, which a second home doesn't get, so you may pay up to 18 mills of school operating tax the seller didn't. Budget from the new number, not the seller's bill.
Insurance. Homeowners insurance on a rural, seasonal or waterfront home can cost more and take longer to place, especially far from a fire station. Get a quote before your inspection period ends, because the lender needs that policy in place to close.
Distance isn't a problem. I work by phone and e-signature across the state, and you can sign at a title office near the property or near home, or with a mobile notary. Plenty of up-north buyers live downstate, and the process works the same for them.
For some people up north starts at Clare, and for others it starts at the Mackinac Bridge. I work with buyers and homeowners across all of it, including Clare, Gladwin, Houghton Lake, Roscommon, Grayling, Cadillac, Traverse City, Leelanau, Charlevoix, Petoskey, Harbor Springs, Gaylord, Alpena, Oscoda and Tawas, and in the U.P., St. Ignace, Cedarville and the Les Cheneaux Islands, Sault Ste. Marie, Munising, Marquette, Escanaba and Houghton.
I'm based in Milford and licensed throughout Michigan, so the property can be anywhere in the state and so can you. If you're also selling a home downstate to make the move, the buy before you sell options can keep you from having to time both closings perfectly.
Call or text me the address and how you plan to use it, whether that's weekends, retirement or rental income, and I'll tell you which loans fit and what to check before you commit. Seasonal road, old septic, no comparable sales for miles? We'll figure it out.
Call / Text (810) 819-8686 Price My Deal →