Multi-Family Scaling Strategy

[John Kirby]

Hello BiggerPockets community,

First-time poster here!

My wife and I are amateur property investors, and over the next year, we're aiming to get more serious by purchasing several small multi-family properties. Here's a rundown of our current financial situation and REI experience:

Current Properties:

1. Short-term rental in the mountains of NC:
2. - Owned outright
3. - Grosses $2-4k per month
4. - Valued at $400k
5. Condo in Charlotte, NC (long-term rental):
6. - Owned outright
7. - Rents for $2.9k per month, cash-flowing $2k per month
8. - Valued at $350k
9. Primary residence:
10. - Located in NC
11. - worth $800k, owe $200k

My wife is also a minority partner in an investment group that specializes in BRRRing foreclosed properties. She handles acquisitions, renovations, and rentals for the company and has flipped around 15 properties to date.

Financial Situation:

• Cash Available for Investment: $200k
• Equity: Willing to tap into the equity in our two rental properties for additional purchases.
• Income: ~$250k

Our Plan and Questions:

We're based in NC but are considering purchasing multi-family homes in the Midwest due to significantly lower property prices and perceived better cash flow opportunities. However, we have several questions and would appreciate the community's advice:

1. Midwest Markets - Which Midwest markets offer the best value for investors and present good growth opportunities?
2. Agent Search - Should we find an agent in each city/market we are interested in working with?
3. Financing - Should we secure financing before identifying a property or vice-versa?
4. Lenders - Is there a preferred lender for multi-family housing that's owned by out-of-state investors?
5. Scaling Ownership - Given our available cash and equity, what strategies would you recommend for scaling our property ownership efficiently?

We'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences! Any insights or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!