Been listening to the podcast a ton and figured I would give the forums a whirl.  

Background: I own a separate, successful business and I am looking to diversify and also get some tax benefits from rentals. I grew up around house flipping, am very handy, and feel very comfortable becoming a landlord.  I tend to be a conservative estimator though and I need some thoughts on if I should dive into a deal I am working on or if its a trap worth avoiding.

The house: I am looking into buying my first rental that is a multi-family home with 3 units and only needs minimal cosmetic rehab.  I would likely get it at current market value offer (lower than asking but what I think is fair for the asset).  I was hoping for a distressed property that I could rehab/refi to get my downpayment back out but this house is mostly turnkey.  Its on a busy road which I feel will slow the appreciation of the home but it has a nice sized yard (something I can hopefully monetize at some point) in an otherwise tightly packed suburb and it is not a bad area to live in (not affluent but not impoverished).  Having 3 units is also a bonus because most are illegal 2's or use the basement as a 3rd (which I want to avoid -- this one uses a converted garage space).  Units are all metered for separate utilities which is also a benefit.  The house is pretty turnkey and checks the boxes for what I am looking for.  All units are currently rented and paying.

Now for the numbers: The NOI is about $30k annually and I am calculating a cap rate of around 5.7%. I have access about 10% of the deal in cash but would need to do the other 90% with a (hopefully traditional) mortgage + a healthy HELOC that would still have reserves if I get into a pinch. (This deal would not impact my household's personal savings / emergency fund)

Cash on cash, I am looking at very close to a $0/month cash flow (possibly -$100 to +100 depending on a few variables) since I am financing/borrowing so much of the deal. There is a possibility for a little rent increase and monetizing the yard for maybe a commercial truck to park. IRR calculators which I assume factors in equity shows a 12.23% over 20 years on the calculator. Also shows a total profit if sold in 25 years close to $1mil or about 1,310% cash on cash.

My biggest concern (and where I could use some advice) is getting into my first rental deal that locks up my cash, cuts my HELOC in half, and leaves me tight on month to month to stay positive cash-wise at first. This investment is a buy and hold strategy but has a terrible up front ROI on the downpayment so I would be working as a landlord for pennies. Long-term and for tax purposes, its amazing though and no rehab headaches up front.... but does the opportunity cost come too high with locking up my warchest in this deal and missing out on others with better #s? Should I continue to look for a distressed property that has more built in equity potential (but may come with its own issues)? Or is this a unicorn because it essentially will pay for itsself and just needs to be managed?

Sorry for the long post - I hopefully gave enough to be a little case study for you guys!  Any pro-tips and advice is graciously welcomed.