I do plan to slightly increase rents (will still be under market compared to others).

Yeah the Value of the properties have definitely increased.

Improvement to the neighborhood and happy tenant - good cash flow and increased net worth.

If the issue is credit utilization, you can fix this by paying down credit cards or increasing credit availability.

In my opinion you'd be better off holding the cash you have on hand and capturing the increased equity you have in your home through a Cash Out Refinance. 

MoCo is nice but has increased in value a lot just like DC and NoVA so I would imagine it would be harder there, but I'm not really personally looking at those markets too hard so I could be wrong.I co-host a meetup once/month in Laurel - I'd be happy to pass along the details for the next one once it's posted if you're interested.

They probably haven't increased their rents in a decade and the proprerties will probably need some work (e.g. upgrading kitchens, baths, and flooring), but it will be a hell of a lot easier, less risky, and less expensive than a brand new construction build. 

I don’t think they can adjust for 2/1 if it is not currently a 2/1 because now the appraiser is basically increasing the value of a property based off of what it could be, almost a pro forma, rather than how it currently operates today, “as-is”.

Since then, I’ve paid several special assessments, replaced the HVAC and hot water heater twice, and absorbed tax and HOA increases.

This is a value add play in a big market where renovations and other features added will increase rents.What does BP think?