The sales comparison approach is typically done for residential real estate and will be less appropriate and come in under value because there are no good comps, and even an appraisal using the income approach (unless the appraiser is trained to do more complex commercial appraisals) is probably not going to be the most accurate either because they typically use market cap rates and in this case you don’t have good comparable income properties to find the market cap for the analysis.  

I have personally witnessed the success of this approach.

This cushions potential value drops.Syndicator vetting: Only partner with syndicators who have a strong track record in different market conditions.Market and asset class knowledge: Understand market cycles and the specific real estate types (multifamily, industrial, etc.) you're investing in.Avoid chasing trends: Just because a market or asset is “hot” doesn’t mean it’s solid.You’re right that this approach doesn’t cap your upside, quality diversification can still generate huge returns while managing risk.Best regards,Drago

Need to be sure you include the "unknown budget" and never take the optimistic approach as it is better to have money left at the end than writing more and more checks that were unplanned for.Again, if you can walk through an actual property and compare notes with someone that does it in your area (key factor), you will be way ahead of what a generic book can give you.

I'm a beginner as well, but have been reading this site enough to see the recommended (over and over) approach is to leverage your presumably un-tied-down youth to move every 2 years, each time using 3.5% down payments to buy multifamily buildings / house hacks. 

I concur on the Section 8 approach  and don't forget the complete background check.Stop the bleeding first.

It has been profitable for us but competition has risen in recent years so we continually work to refresh our places and marketing approaches.

It sounds like the best approach is to always check multiple places for rates?

I had a very pleasant phone conversation with Bob (SVP of Praxis) a few days ago and his knowledge and approach was aligned with how I operate.

That remodel is going to take both time and capital, so it’s a key part of my plans as well.Would love to hear how others are approaching similar goals—anyone else tapping into equity or gearing up for larger projects?