But if does shift in the next two months and you find something you'll still be in position to take advantage of it and keep the tax deferral.All depends on how strong your convictions are that there will be a significant drawback of prices. 

I like offering it for obvious reasons but the drawback is it's one step closer to a construed sale. 

The biggest drawback is the high cost of the local properties if I go with the "purchase properties I would live in" philosophy. 

The draw back to these loans is that they are more paperwork heavy than the other "portfolio" types of loans....but if you have ever received a loan on your primary home, it's likely that you will go through the same type of paperwork here with conventional lending.

My most significant draw back is that I work full time and I’m unable to commit the time to deals to ensure them through, at least around the clock.

And the drawbacks of running a brokerage?

The drawback to paying off the 1st and the HELOC with the new 1st is that if you didn't take the HELOC out at the time that you bought the property, and/or it was used as part of the acquisition of the property, then it will be considered a cash out refinance. 

sure all your points make sense but there are alot of drawbacks to multi family when it comes to tenant retention and property maintenance that i have seen outweigh all of your positives if not handled correctly, and sometimes even in spite of good management the negatives outweigh the positives.

Other than requiring disclosure, are there any big drawbacks of being licensed that I'm unaware of? 

I would think that it would be hard to find a "cash cow" in LA without some major drawbacks.....