One issue i see with doing it the way you're thinking is that in our market in Miami the gamble is much more risky, with the crazy high rents in those areas you mentioned so you have to make sure that area can be constantly rented out, otherwise you're gonna have to bite that monthly lease payment.

I have to admit that I started second-guessing my gamble of buying 1/2 a house for $130k and having a "partner" on the other half who didn't know that the house was on these two lots.

,My Answer would be -  In today's market if i want to buy #1 Reason would be Low Interest rates (knowing exactly when to buy can be a bit of gamble.

@Jesse Wixson,Purely my opinion...Investing for appreciation is speculation (read: gambling). ...and equity doesn't pay the bills. 

@Pat Brown,Investing for appreciation is known as speculation (read: gambling).

You should be shooting for at least $100 per month per door in real cash flow.Of course none of this takes into consideration the appreciation game/gamble or amortization, however, if your goal is income, you need to be fully educated on operating expenses and all other costs associated with owning rental units.

How about the old and occasional appreciation misspelled as "gambling".

@Ray Johnson I don't want to gamble.

But that is a conversation for another time and by someone who is more economically inclined than I.Anyways, point being is that I will gamble with my heloc. 

Not the time to gamble on the rookie sponsor.