Scaling with existing equity - what to do

[David Holmes]

I am fairly new to investing in RE. Almost 5 years ago, I was approched by a widow about buying rental properties that she and her husband owned. I jumped at the opportunity. I bought 3 SFHs with zero down and gave her a 15-year note at 7%. I am coming up on the five year anniversary of the purchase. My question is what to do with the equity to acquire more properties. Any suggestions are much appreciated. I am using a buy-and-hold strategy for the most part, but will be glad to consider other strategies.