A mortgage lender can help determine if refinancing or tapping into equity might allow you to acquire additional properties.Consider a 1031 Exchange: If you're open to selling a current property, a 1031 exchange can defer capital gains taxes while enabling you to upgrade to a larger or more profitable asset.

When you live in that duplex for 2 years and then sell you'll be able to take 50% of the profit tax free (the allocation for the side you lived in). 

Then your best bet are probably community banks which have more flexibility (albeit worse terms) than larger banks and also worth looking into are DSCR lenders.

Quote from @John Lasher: Hey everyone,I've completed a few flips, but have always heard that larger multifamily deals is where most people gravitate towards.

My wife and I have a vacant lot in Tallahassee and we're looking to use the current equity to exchange for a larger single family investment property.

Keep in mind the more you write off the less money you will show as you net.If you have (2) full years and depending on how the accountant files your taxes you will have a schedule C more than likely or another schedule that shows profit and loss.

Also, for people who wish to pursue larger real estate ventures, you don't personally need to be able to analyze a deal, and can possibly partner with someone who does or even hire an underwriter.

You do a 1031 to a new, larger property with even more depreciation.

If the property is vacant, you will attract a larger pool of buyers as not everyone looking for a house wants to use it as a rental. 

But @Garrett White and I are shifting our focus to larger unit count properties.