Non-Owner Occupied (Investment/Income Properties) requirements

[Mark_in_Pasadena]

Can anyone tell me the requirements for getting a loan for purchasing investment properties given the following: 

1. Assuming I already have a recent loan for my primary home that puts me at 40% DTI (729k/4.25% 30 year fixed loan, made a 20% downpayment), absolutely no other debt, everything else other than the home loan is PIF.  This is the home my family and I plan to live on for the rest of our lives.
2. 815+ FICO scores on all 3 bureaus
3. I still have around $600k in stocks/cash investments that I'd like to diversify into some investment properties.
4. The scenario I'm looking at: there are 2 different parcel #s being sold together in the Los Angeles, CA 90042 zip code (one APN has 2 rental properties, the other APN has 4 rental properties).  I'm assuming this would require 2 loans  (one parcel # is being sold for $210,000, the other for $440,000, for a total of $650k)--they share a common driveway, and will only be sold together.
5. The properties collect about $4,800 gross rent per month, and all 6 rental units are all fully occupied with leases.
6. I'd like to put 30% down ($195,000) and get a 30 year loan on these total 6 rental units.  Given even a 5% interest 30 year fixed loan for the rest of the $455,000 (though i would expect better rates), I would have a $2,442 monthly mortgage payment.  Even adding insurance, taxes, maintenance, and loss of occupancy %, the gross rent would pay for it all, and I would still have a nice monthly profit left over (the profit will of course increase over the years as the rents increase and my payments stay fairly fixed).

My questions are these:

1. How do lenders in today's lending environment qualify a new income property borrower that's already at 40% DTI on their primary home, but have 30% down for income properties that have a positive carry? 
2. What kind of rates are available for investment properties in the Los Angeles 90042 zip code?
3. I remember reading that fannie/freddie have a limit of 4 non-owner occupied loans per investor.  So, in this case would this count as 2 loans (2 assessor parcel #s), or could it be combined into 1 loan somehow, since they share a driveway and are being sold by the same owner?  The reason I'd like to know is that I'd like to continue buying more positive carry properties like this, leveraged with 30% down loans instead of just buying outright with cash.

[ShanetheMortgageMan]

1.  Majority of lenders won't use rental income unless you have a 2-year landlord history.  Meaning someone who hasn't had experience managing rental properties for the past 2 years can't buy an investment property and be able to use the income from the units to be rented out in order to qualify for the mortgage being obtained on the property.  Very few still will, but it's getting less and less as time progresses.

2.  Investment property interest rates should be the same no matter where the property is located.  Variants will be FICO score, down payment, loan amount, and property type.  With 30% down, you'd get the same interest rate as someone who is buying an owner occupied home, but would have to pay 1.75% points for that same rate.  2-4 unit property increases the price of that same rate by another 1%, so a total of 2.75% in points.

3.  Both Fannie and Freddie cap out the amount of financed 2nd home/investment properties at 4 if the subject financing is being done on an investment property or 2nd home, if the subject is a primary residence there is no limit to the amount of financed properties you can have.  In the situation where you are looking to finance the 5th property and would no longer fit under the normal guidelines, Fannie Mae has a "multiple property" program where you can finance up to 10 investment/2nd homes.  You may be able to get a mortgage that would encumber both the 2-unit & 4-unit property together since the properties are adjacent, but it'd be a commercial loan program with commercial loan terms (which often aren't quite as attractive as residential, but are more flexible as it's the property itself that qualifies cash-flow'wise).