Most are performing well and a couple of them are in the middle of dealing with evictions. 

To achieve this, I’m planning to scale rapidly by performing a couple of syndications to acquire a larger portfolio.I currently have a portfolio of 17 properties, but to justify labor costs and create a sustainable structure, I need to expand quickly.

As I'm new to this domain, I would to hire a consultant to perform some zoning and other due diligence activities.

It’s a tax office, so I suspect they might be waiting to see how their business performs and the impact of technology before deciding.Thanks in advance for any advice or insights you can offer!

Owners mistakenly ASSUME all PMCs offer the exact SAME SERVICES and PERFORM those services EXACTLY THE SAME WAY, so price is the only differentiator – so, they often select the first PMC they call or that calls them back!

So now you are throwing good money after bad probably without a guarantee of any actual performance of the company until much later down the line.  

If your existing rental properties reported their financial performance on your most recent Schedule E, then your lender should be using a net cashflow analysis based on the Sched E figures for your DTI for those properties in most scenarios.

There is no housing market in US where real estate can out perform stocks.

Even in challenging times, well-bought properties in strong markets tend to perform over the long haul.Key Questions to Ask YourselfWhat is my investment strategy (flipping, buy-and-hold, short-term rentals, etc.), and does it align with current market conditions?

My client bought a 22 unit building and used this strategy and walked out of closing with a check for $800k to perform the rest of the renovations, paid himself back his already expended rehab costs and his entire down payment.