For mileage I like Everlance.

Well, it depends how hard it is to get the tenants gone in that locale, how long it takes to turn a unit and how long you can afford to be without tenants.

Filter out units like yours.

And again you need decent credit to get this as well and renew annually.3.

It doesn't look like you mentioned how much equity you will have tied up in either of these properties after you refinance, but assuming you will have a decent amount of equity tied up, I would sell the property in the 'not so great' area.

A nice multi family property that you can do some light fixtures on sounds like a perfect strategy for you so you and your wife can have your own unit.

It wouldnt tie you to your home - you can sell the home at any time and the heloc lien will be paid off out of the sale proceeds at closing, just like with any other mortgage. 

For perspective, with a dozen rental doors, we save approximately 9% of our monthly rental income.This approach has worked well for us—it easily covers smaller repairs and maintenance issues, while allowing the reserve fund to steadily grow over time to handle larger capital expenses when they come up.If the building you’re looking at is sitting on the market while others are moving quickly, there's a good chance it's overpriced.

Hi BP Community, I’m helping a family member (high W-2 income, excellent credit, based in the Bay Area) explore creative paths to primary homeownership in a high-cost market (Menlo Park, CA).They are fully capable of covering a mortgage in the $2.0M–$2.3M range, but like many, liquidity is the blocker—no family gift, no stock windfall, and equity is currently tied up in a second home in Palm Springs.We’re looking into two models:Silent Co-Ownership•Investor contributes all or part of the down payment• My family member would live in the home full-time and covers 100% of the monthly mortgage, tax, insurance, and maintenance•Equity and appreciation are shared based on initial structure•Clear buyout option or exit terms in ~5–7 yearsLease-to-Own•Investor buys the home• Multi-year lease and a pre-negotiated option to buy at a set appreciation or fair market formula•Builds equity or credits via monthly payments or upfront considerationHas anyone done something similar?

Nice numbers as well.