@Ranga Ramanathan I'm guessing that the multifamily is a well-maintained building.

I don't think you could wrong paying off your debt or maintaining it.

Owning rentals is not like owning more stock.

My question is, how do I maintain my license without working for a "broker" My current broker that is sponsoring my license is from Century 21, but they are following the Mike Ferry System and want me to make X number of calls per week in order to work for them.

Duplexes are either side by side, or 2 story.Some side x sides are basically owned by separate owners and may have separate PID's so not advantageous if you can't purchase the entire building.One thing is whether the property has current tenants and what lease terms they have, the leases usually transfer to new owner and you would be held liable to maintain the term of the lease until it expires unless you make arrangements with seller to deliver property vacant.. but in terms of purchase a occupied property shows income so would improve loan terms. 

; do you know how that would affect my ability to write off annual expenses that occur as part of maintaining that property?

Hi, first of all, thanks for maintaining this website, it's a great resource for newbies like me. 

It's in excellent condition (I know, I've been helping to maintain it since the owner abandoned it years ago.)

On another note, if you are looking to have access to some of the retirement funds without having to pay taxes, you could open a solo 401k plan, which can be directly invested in real estate, and then you can borrow some of the solo 401k funds.Following are the similarities and differences between the solo 401k and the self-directed IRA.The Self-Directed IRA and Solo 401k Similarities Both were created by congress for individuals to save for retirement;Both may be invested in alternative investments such as real estate, precious metals tax liens, promissory notes, private company shares, and stocks and mutual funds, to name a few;Both allow for Roth contributions;Both are subject to prohibited transaction rules;Both are subject to federal taxes at time of distribution;Both allow for checkbook control for placing alternative investments;Both may be invested in annuities;Both are protected from creditors;Both allow for nondeductible contributions;Both are prohibited from investing in assets listed under I.R.C. 408(m); andNeither may be invested in your own business.  

There is value in paying someone else to maintain the property and the management.