I’ve been investing in the Tampa market for over 20 years, and in just the past year, I've bid on several mid-size apartment buildings and at least a dozen duplexes.

Title insurance, settlement fees, and recording fees can vary, so you could request updated estimates as you get closer to the closing date.If you’re expecting to stay under $5,000 out of pocket, double-check the loan estimate to ensure this aligns with your DPA and the amount you're being asked to bring to the table at closing.

When I was in my 20s and 30s, it was easy to get a hotel room or rental home, spot on the beach, table at a restaurant, and traffic was a nonevent. 

its against HUD rules to acept money under the table. 

@Jagjit Singh Welcome to BPFirst you might mention what size multi family you are talking about.

Is this is a size thing (company just needs to get bigger/have more equity), or perhaps a business structure issue, or should I be looking at different financing sources other than local banks?

@Armando Carrera research and develop your own typical tenant qualifications so you don’t accidentally violate fair housing, landlord/tenant or local laws on occupancy limits based on bedroom quantity/size required for kids, number of unrelated persons in one house, etc.

When you get to the closing table you make sure you close around the middle of the month so you walk away from the closing table with all the security deposits (do they have to be in seperate accounts in your state?)

And we found a great pre-finished lumber supplier for the siding and the tongue and groove that is saving us 10 to 15k a cabin depending on the size (and producing far better quality results in the finishes).It doesn't sound like much when you're looking at 300k to 500k builds.  

I mean, the buyer is the one bringing the money to the table so they've always *really* been paying it's just been shown on the seller's side of the settlement statement.