Not all attorneys are equal, so ask them questions to find out how often they do this, their methods, their success rate, etc.

I would be doing this to be able to rent it out in the future at a higher rental rate. 

With the high State tax rate in CA this will be helpful. 

Depreciation recapture is taxed at a max of 25% or your personal tax rate.

There is always a chance that rates will drop, but I would imagine $25K would buy down the annual rate so significantly that you would never see a lower rate offered by a bank so you wouldn't even think about refinancing.

The rates on the 4 unit are astronomical even compared to what the current owner is paying (about 190/mo).

Rate should not exceed 12.5% at most and more commonly about 11.75%.

I think (not sure) its relevant to my bond rating.

This results in lower vacancy rates and better tenant retention.4.

Any help on how to figure out a local CAP rates for a specific area would be helpful.