As a SFR investor for over 15 years I have been wrestling with this question in the past, because it feels like you should upgrade to "bigger".I know for sure that I would not enjoy the ownership experience that comes with a small 4F, because in Milwaukee that typically also means lower income tenants. 

At the beginning, it may be difficult to get a more expensive property that will appreciate well and so your choice is go with the cheaper property and get cash flow until you can sell and upgrade, or wait for a really good deal which you may be waiting for quite a while and its possible that you will have spent so much time waiting that you could have purchased multiple cash flowing properties by the time you get a good appreciation deal that you can qualify for / refinance after the rehab. i know anyone can go out and get seller financing deals, HML, flip to build capital or whatever the case may be I am just saying sometimes those will be harder and could result in less deals overall. 

I believe the price points of the apartment units will dictate appliance specs/packages but appliances are something I always upgrade over those offering competing units.

Hey Tyler we hate to hear that your experience was negative sincerely we would have hoped that we could have come to a resolution we know that you and your partner had made a request that we do $800 of work that was unfortunately not in your scope of work at the time we had exhausted $4900 in additional work to ensure the property was to satisfaction which included a new hood range upgraded lvp flooring additional framing  new window and a paint upgrade from a single color format to a multi color format and can lighting all of which was never in the original scope and unfortunately when we requested that we do the work you declined I’ve attached before and after videos of the home for reference https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/h0ddll4cyp5g5gq12o73s/Video-J... always twos sides to these stories.. 

You can't call up Apple's CEO and suggest improvements, but you can definitely upgrade your rental property's kitchen to command higher rent.

I feel like the seller would wait and I could just buy it in cash since I do plan to refinance it anyway and pull out the equity once I’ve done some repairs/upgrades.

You will not only achieve a status upgrade in the market of RE investing, you are given the opportunity to have the knowledge to back it up.

In my opinion, in many cases it’s better to invest in a property that costs less and is a bit under decorated - then hire a really good decorator to upgrade at least a few rooms for the unique,  “wow” moment in photos.

., the 2006 or 2009 IECC — International Energy Conservation Code).Cost Considerations for a 90-unit or 112-unit Project:The actual cost of qualifying for the 45L tax credit depends on various factors, including:Energy Efficiency Compliance: The primary cost will come from ensuring that each unit meets the required energy efficiency standards, which typically involve energy modeling, certification from third-party energy raters, and potentially upgrading insulation, HVAC systems, windows, and other components of the building to meet the necessary performance levels.Energy Modeling: Typically, you'll need to pay for an energy consultant or engineer to model the building's energy performance and ensure it qualifies for the credit.

Ive owned a 3 family in Fitchburg MA for 4 years that has done exceptionally well with it, living for free in one unit for a while and constantly upgrading the property over the years.