(I like to use 10% as a bench mark)BUT the tenants lease ends by the end of the year.

If you mean LLC vs Limited partnership, in general LLCs are considered more flexible and is a more modern structure.

So you have about $22K in hand.Now go shopping for your next house, but benchmark $10K to pay back the city when you move, leaving you with $12K for a down payment.

I don't have much experience with multi family properties, but I do know you want to use the cap rates of similar properties in your market as a benchmark for evaluating your deal.

Its a large space, about 1000 square feet, and a few modern fixtures and some paint would really make the place nice. 

Thanks Sean....I've got a list just to bring it back to decent rental shape, compliance with modern codes, etc.

However, the optimistic (speculative) side of me thinks this $400K home was $650K 2 years ago and is highly depressed because of the hardest RE crash in modern history and the tightest lending in who knows how long.

The 70% formula stated earlier is really good advice and a good benchmark.

If a home has been neglected by the mortgagor, or homeowner, and has a lengthy list of repairs needed, what benchmark is used to determine if it will qualify?

Another project I'd really like to do is mixed use type, Modern style, Live/work units with ocean views!