We have some commercial borrowers that will purchase a property with cash and get a loan to reimburse themselves. Sometimes the deed transfer and the loan closing are just a few days apart. Am I correct that since the funds are not directly for the purchase this would not be a purchase under HMDA?

Does it make a difference if sometimes the borrower originally plans on letting us finance the purchase but ends up using cash a few days before closing and using the funds for reimbursement?

In my opinion, you are dealing with two separate loan requests as outlined in your second scenario. Your borrower initially asked for funds to complete a purchase, but then didn't follow through. If the purchase loan had already been approved by your institution, and did not close, then you have a HMDA reportable transaction that was Approved, Not Accepted. (assuming the property to be purchased with the loan had a dwelling and was going to be secured by a dwelling.)

If they subsequently come back for an equity out loan, this is completely separate from the first loan request. The purpose is not to purchase a residence, it's not to refi a dwelling loan as the property is unencumbered, and it's not for improvements, so it's not reportable.