All, My partner and I are in early in the process of buying a property with multiple, 13, duplexes on it.

Obviously that means your two partners in the deal you mentioned may have to increase their cash by $25k each.

Rent control is another strong factor as many cities have super strict rent control for duplexes and up with Oakland and San Francisco leading the way.

I'm looking to network and for possible partners.

Dominic,You have a lot of questions which is great but the questions demonstrate this is your first REI and having partners can complicate things if not handled correctly. 

My partner tried to negotiate with the broker for a rate of 4% for year 1-5 and 2.5% for year 6-10.

Here are some considerations:Real estate requires a strong network.

I know this is a bit older of a thread, but if anyone's still following it and looking in the area, I live here (actually looking at the lake, or what's left of it, as I type this), and have myself and a couple of partners (and reliable contractors) looking to really get going on both STR's and LTR's between here, New Braunfels, and San Marcos.

In many cases, but definitely not all, students partner with Cody's development company to handle the entitlements and the exits to homebuilders for a profit share which can be mid-six figures for simply bird dirt-dogging the deal.  

Deflation is slowly ticking down the various price indexes, despite personal consumption remaining strong.