I would nonetheless be the contact person and primary decision maker with property management and my brother would be largely silent as per his preference.

This would be our primary residence.

Another lost his primary residence plus his vacation rental and will be staying with me for the next month while he sorts out his home.

Couple things I wish someone told me when I rented out my primary in Katy:- your taxes will go up dramatically over time - cash flow is inconsistent- while Katy is a fantastic rental market it's still competitiveTo answer your questions: - yes, the homestead exemption will increase your taxes at a faster rate but you can protest them either yourself (I don't recommend as I've tried and it was a pain) or with a professional service- To start, you're either going to pay for books, classes, etc. or pay the school of hard knocks.

I would make this my primary residence for however long the loan requires. 

However, smaller properties tend to have asking prices influenced by factors like local demand or future appreciation potential, not just rental income.If you're finding that the numbers from the cap rate approach are consistently coming up lower than the asking price, it may be because the market value is being driven by different factors, especially in a competitive or appreciating area.I’d recommend using comparable sales as your primary tool while keeping the income approach in the back of your mind to avoid overpaying.

HOA, no homestead exemption, because my primary residence is in PA. 

But yes, my wife and I plan on investing a du/triplex and living in one unit as a primary residence. 

With the exception of finding the tenants (I use an agent) I manage all maintenance aspects of the property but am coming to a point where I might want to move on and considering doing a 1031 exchange to of course avoid Cap Gains and invest in another property closer to my primary residence.

But we won’t qualify for a primary residence refi anymore, and I’ll need more equity to refinance as an investment property.Future investment goals: I want to own rental properties in the future, but I’m not sure if holding on to this one (which we already have) is the right move, or if it makes more sense to sell and build up savings for a better investment down the line.I’d really appreciate any advice on what I might be overlooking here.