As a newer investor, you can take the proceeds of your NOI to reinvest, and continue to grow your operations.But.....If this was the only method there would be no successful RE investors in Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York; which obviously isn't true.

I remember calling Citibank during that time asking about refinancing a 3-family and they said, "we're not doing any refinances at this time" and hung up on me.If you had the cash or could find a lender, of course properties that were cash flowing were still good.

I am now 25 with a few more properties and am looking forward to utilizing the ideas from Bigger Pockets to exponentially grow my portfolio.

And remember if the market goes down they can take away your HELOC that you haven't used.It's your decision and comes to what it worth to you.Good Luck!

When the bank changes their mind or decides they don't want to answer for months and months who does everyone remember?

This might not be an appropriate path for you, but, whatever the path you choose, remember that a slow and steady progress along your pre-determined path will take you a long way: hard work, integrity, and results...that is my simple formula.

A good RE attorney will likely recommend something like a Texas or Delaware Series LLC, particularly if you grow your real estate business beyond a single investment. 

As you grow you may want a holding company with multiple LLC's (either one per property or a few, say 250K worth of assets in one LLC) then your holding company would show interest in those LLC's.

I would obviously look to first get those apartments rented then increase rent to other apartments as the area grows.

If it's option 1 I would recommend looking into a multifamily in a growing or very stable market that you know very well and have access to easily if its not a market in your back yard.If it's option 2 I would recommend vetting syndicators/sponsors and seeing who is investing in assets that align with you investment goals.