@Samuel Metcalf- thanks   1) I would recomend getting a HELOC in place on your primary residence duplex  for  as much as  possible...this should be available for  free or a low  cost and the rate will be variable in the  8-11%  range ...prime rate +  margin of  1-3% ) ...the min payment is in interest only payment on outstanding balance   2)  use the heloc for the  remodeling  costs ...pay it down as  agressively as you can   3) on the  purchase of the investmenet  1 unit -  you are  allowed to put as little as 15%  of the price for your down payment ...the pricing you get for the loan will improve  as your down payment  grows so you might look at  75% /  80%  and  85%  ltv  options 

@Aron Shreiber welcome, there is a bunch of good info here, in general I like the advise of "looking where you ave an advantage" whatever that advantage is can be a broad range. 

Yes, in certain price ranges, and certain loan types it is normal for buyers to ask for seller concessions.

There are passive conservative real estate investments that qualify for a 1031 exchange and return in the same range plus quite a bit more when you factor in all of the Internal Rate of Return components.I always counsel folks to keep their equity and real estate investments separate. 

If you can cash flow 550/mo at the low end of your projected rental range, why not?

The lender isn't bound by your operating agreement, they are bound by the loan agreement, which will most certainly say that you each are jointly and severally liable (which means that each of you and all of you are responsible for the whole deficiency--basically whoever they can get to first, or whoever has the most assets for them to seize).This is why a wealthy person wouldn't want to sign a PG with a broke partner(s). 

Things seem a bit fishy and some yellow flags that I always see on websites like this one that are possibly either scammy/fraudulent or, at best, just brokers without direct access to capital, are things like:  - All stock photos and not a single team or officer photo - Range of loans that are super small ($100 was listed as payday loan in the FAQ) all the way up to $30M.

If you have the ability to target a specific purchase price, I suggest staying in the $250k-$1m range.

And the assumptions most economists made in projecting inflation numbers these past few months was that shelter would come down from its 9% to the 2-3% range.

For that range I would like above 1700 maybe up to 2000.