You’re spot on, you can potentially use a 3.5% down FHA loan for new financing if income and rents from the other three units are sufficient.

I am retiring from the military and am planning to move to Calhoun County in Alabama next year and have started really looking at the list of delinquent properties and just made requests on 10 different vacant plots, ranging from 2009 to 2015 tax sales (to the state).  

Kitchen has custom Cabinets, Stainless Steel appliances including Gas range with pot filler, tile backsplash and leathered marble countertops.

Both those homes were in Moonridge and in the 600K value range now. 

Kitchen has custom Cabinets, Stainless Steel appliances including Gas range with pot filler, tile backsplash and leathered marble countertops.

I recommend you do some market research on the price points to purchase and what you can get for rent to answer the question yourself.Regarding a 3 to 4 unit, If you decide to use an FHA loan make sure you research the FHA self-sufficiency guidelines. 

I did not know that triplex/fourplex would require self-sufficiency test.

I know "appreciation" can be a four-letter-word in the BP community sometimes, but in a place like San Diego with SFH cap rates in the 2.5% range, it's just how it is.

I am seeing some online auto-generated that range from $30-$100 - some requiring a membership that includes other services that I don't need right now, and I'm not sure they are all customizable for me to add my own addendums or clauses. 

Regarding not good credit, I usually request a co-signer and copies of their bank statements showing that they have sufficient reserves in case anything arises.