I still can't say what you should do, but right now people are paying prices for 4plexes here that make my head shake sometimes and that is a good opportunity for you ;) I am re-allocating from value to cash flow plays as well.There are also many people who are not in a position to take millions in net worth and put it under the mattress. 

And they only look at and just use the tax assessors allocation. 

Or if you're one of those people that laughs at bank financing like it's the joke of the century then you're going to private equity, retirement funds with designated allocations, private money family offices.

I allocate 5% of rental income to CapEx reserves.

Given the lingering financial impact of COVID and current economic conditions it seems a very worthwhile thing to learn about for later investment and will likely form the bulk of my near-term purchases following these first ones, and may well be my predominate activity throughout 2023.International Investment:The idea of liquidating all personal and business assets whilst keeping my 4/2 sharehouse in Aus and househacking a small cash-bought SF in Maine is an appealing option, after all income/expenses/allocations however it would negatively cash flow $2.50/week assuming a stable currency rate.Though principal paydown is a valuable wealth-building tool, my desire for cash flow in addition to a lot of trapped equity in Australia's fairly rigid/monopolistic/regulated financial market (and an unavoidable double-taxed hit on eventual sale[4.ii] for which i'd not utilize a 1031 exchange[4.iii]) makes this an unattractive option.4.i - USDA loan qualifying region map (https://eligibility.sc.egov.us...)4.ii - Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (FEIE) thresholds (https://www.americansabroad.or...)4.iii - Challenges with international 1031 exchanges (https://atlas1031.com/exchange...)If you've read this far, thanks so much for your attention.

Thus a reasonable utility allocation formula.

To the idea of whether risk is properly allocated to a project and therefore the acceptable IRR, I could even argue is not a required knowledge of the investor.

I have decided to allocate a sizable chunk of cash starting out in REI, but want to minimize the cash risk starting out and will definitely be extremely patient in finding that "awesome" deal for my first investment.Also does anyone have any recommendations for good REI clubs in the SF Bay Area (in particular the South Bay).

Still it's money that would be better allocated towards principle on one of my rentals.  

As luck would have it (and the numbers indicated) this was a very good deal....been like clock work 1st of every month the bank account grows net about $700 after everything including capex/repair allocation.