No partners in sight right now.

@Peter Sautter Thank you for that insight. 

I was thinking of purchasing a plex and live in one unit and have the other unit's rent cover a good amount of the mortgage.I've been getting some mixed signals on buying vs renting, and hopefully some experts can share their insights on it.Some of the arguments that I've received for renting first is:I don't really know the areas in Seattle, and buying a property will lock me down in a long and big investment.

@Trenton Miller Thanks for your insight!

I appreciate your insights!

@Dave Foster, I appreciate the insight.

You thought it was a "no brainer" to exchange your cash (free money) with immediate access, for a HELOC (less money...that you had to pay for in with interest)...that you had to wait for a year to use, just so you could eliminate the PMI, that your tenant was paying for in the first place? 

Sale one or more properties and complete a 1031 exchange

I ended up selling my original property in a 1031 exchange after getting almost everything fixed up.

For example, I recently spoke with a note investor with the following initial qualifiers: NPN / SFR / Current Market Value: $50K - $250K /  2 or 3 BD / min 880 SF / County Population: min 50,000 / Low Crime RateAny feedback or insight would be appreciated.