Decide if you want a two, three, or four-unit building based on what you want, your budget, and how much work you can handle.

Overall, gained $260K in value (based on appraisal) while investing $220K Lessons learned?

I will continue to look for properties near military bases, rental history has been fantastic.

Just start looking for properties and let the property property decide if it wants to be a flip or a rental based upon then numbers. 

And others have pointed out that building in flood zones can be much more expensive with special permits, requirements like living area starting above base flood elevation, probably more than the $25K difference in the lot that's not in a flood zone.  

Hey @Sophia Oberlander, based on the tax court cases I've seen it would depend on how strong their other hours logged are.

I'm not very familiar with how flat roofs work, but I'm going to relay what my handyman told me, based on what he saw and the account of a tenant who witnessed some of it:-They tore the existing off the roof, did not replace any sheeting.

I'm planning to use VAs to help with the first part that you mentioned - qualifying homeowners based on interest in / willingness to sell.

Hey Jeremy, You could refinance based on the new appraised value (not the purchase price) as long as the property has been seasoned for 90 days. 

Be sure to eventually narrow down your specific buy-box (your investment property "avatar" based on your Goals, Returns/Appreciation).