I’m looking for some advice from investors who have made the transition from single-family rentals into small multifamily/apartment properties.

I currently own a few single-family rentals and I’m considering moving into the 4–10 unit/small commercial multifamily space for my next investment.

One of the decisions I’m wrestling with is whether to sell one of my rental properties in the Houston area. It’s a great property in a solid area, but the cash flow is relatively small. At the same time, I have roughly $150K in equity tied up in the property.

Accessing that equity without selling has been difficult. HELOC options on Texas investment properties seem extremely limited, and a cash-out refinance doesn't seem attractive because I'd be giving up my current low mortgage rate for a significantly higher rate today.

On top of that, Texas property taxes and insurance continue to increase, which keeps putting pressure on the property’s cash flow.

So I’m debating between:

• Keeping a good property with a low interest rate and continuing to build equity
• Selling it, unlocking roughly $150K in equity, and using that capital toward a larger multifamily property that could potentially produce stronger cash flow and allow me to scale faster

For those who have made the jump from SFRs into small apartment/commercial multifamily:

Would you sell a solid property with limited cash flow to redeploy that much equity into multifamily?

Or would you hold onto the low-rate debt and find another way to fund the next acquisition?

I'd especially like to hear from anyone who has faced a similar situation in Texas or used the sale of an SFR to make the jump into 4–10+ units.