Do they use a servicing company to make the payments directly to the , or do they make payments directly to the seller and hope they pass them on to the lender?

Welcome to BP.

If I were new I would simply stick to areas close to where I live.

This allows you to use all of the tax and deferred depreciation recapture to purchase the larger MF propertyA consolidation exchange is where you sell multiple investment properties to purchase a larger and nicer investment property, but you also get the benefit of using all of the tax you would have had to pay to your advantage.

My son is in the military - and will be heading to Tucson AZ in a few months. 

Very interested in the Cleveland/Ohio market in addition to a few other cross-border cities closer to Toronto. 

Hi Batyr, welcome to the community!

Hi Ben, welcome to the community!

So it does appear to be possible to get an FHA 203k loan for a 5-unit & convert to a 4-unit.When possible, aim for the Limited (aka Streamline) 203k loan, as it's less complex, not required to get an FHA consultant, etc.Of course, this is based of the two following important assumptions:1)  zoning allows for this2)  and obviously I owner occupy for at least 12 months3)  the total purchase price + renovations are within the FHA loan limits specific to my areaWhat I'm confused about is the timeline or chronological order of the process? 

Welcome to BiggerPockets, Juan!