Need incite on scaling up

[Christopher Dean]

I’m looking to the wisdom of the crowd , I currently have 1 single family home that has been successfully rented out for 3 years and I believe I’m ready to start looking into acquiring a second. I have about 300k in equity in my property. What’s the best way to finance the next property? I have about 30k in hard cash and if I need I can dip into savings for another 20. How would you proceed?

[Stephen Quesinberry]

If you’re open to it, I’d seriously consider an owner-occupied house hack. Using a low down-payment loan on a duplex or small multifamily lets you scale without tying up much cash or touching your existing equity, and it often improves overall cash flow. If you’re comfortable living in it for a year or so, it’s one of the most efficient ways to grow. If I did it all over again, I would have done this a few times. 

If owner-occupying isn't a fit, the next clean option is tapping a portion of your equity with a HELOC or second lien and pairing that with your cash, without refinancing a good first mortgage. Just make sure the new deal comfortably supports the higher cost of capital.