Go 4-Plex or stay with buy-hold SFRs? San Diego

[Nathaniel Donnelly]

I am a fairly new (1 year) investor with 2 SFR investments in San Diego in addition to my primary. I am ready to pull the trigger on a fourth property which was going to be another SFR, but after discussing with my agent last night, he told me to at least look into getting a 4-plex.

Multi-family properties have always intimidated me I guess, as I have no knowledge about them, if I can afford one, or even how to find them here in San Diego.

Any advice is welcome.  Thanks!

[Andrew Kniffin]

@John Yarenis  and @Joe P. are both correct: SFRs are awesome, holding period matters, and tailor your actions to your unique biz strategy.  

I have 2 SFRs, and they perform very well. I have zero intention to sell these. My favorite holding period is forever! :) If you need cash from a property, you can always layer a HELOC, 2nd mtg, or refi it. This is a tax-free cashout, whereas the sale could incur taxes (unless 1031'd) and will absolutely incur thousands of dollars in fees.

Nathanael, regarding your question of where to find the deals: my experience is that once a deal is on the MLS, it's too late. The property has been marked up to "retail" prices, and the potential ROI is not worth the effort.

To avoid this, become friends with wholesalers who are "in the know" for deals that are 'upstream' of the MLS. These deals have much better potential for meaningful ROI. To find those wholesalers, (1) start looking around BP for them and (2) go to a Meetup and/or REIA meeting.