Cutting wall to connect 2 unit apartment to live in w family/kids

[Drew Leo]

In Los Angeles California, mid-40s w 2 kids, good jobs, have personal SFH 1900sqft valued @ $715K w/ $300k equity. Have 3-plex investment 3hrs away, $250K value , positive flow of $100 per unit, $60K equity, hiring property mgmt. Option to sell both to pursue a bigger live-in investment. Thinking of getting a 4 unit apartment (2bd/1bath in $900k-1.3 mill range) in Southern California , live in side-by-side units (approx 800sqft each) + looking to cut a doorway/breeze way between to connect the 2 units and make it into 1 space. Thinking this simple construction (no door needed) will provide my personal living dwelling with 4 bedroom + 2 bath, we can get owner occupied lower tiered loans, self manage the other 2 units, maintain grounds & property since I live there, I also can reduce my current job down to 18 hours a week because we can afford it on 1 income, we have $100K+ we can easily tap into, I have basic handy man knowledge from helping my in-laws show their apartments, light and quick fixes.

Objective is to advance our RE investment more aggressively = shorten our retirement timeline by 3 years.  Assumption that the approx $4800 mortgage will be covered (my 2 units @ $2400 + $3200 rents = $5600)

Cons:  Living with tenants, neighborhood won't be as good as current place [Covina], we can shuttle the kids back to their current school district if we don't like the apartment school district, quality of neighborhood will drop 40-50%, wife prefers privacy. 

Pros:  About 2 extra days more with family, perhaps tenants will be more on their toes, I can catch & address problems faster

Let's hear thoughts & opinion. Why doesn't the cut out between the units work in this situation? Have you done this yourself or heard of anyone living close to a few tenants?  Anything I'm missing with self-managing an apartment complex I live in with family & kids? 

[Brian G.]

@Drew Leo have you thought about finding a multi unit property that includes a main house? For example a house that has a duplex all on one lot. Your wife might be more open to that idea as it could yield plenty of living space. It’s probably more expensive/unit than a traditional triplex or quad but might be more appealing to her.