If the market changes or costs go up, etc., your flexibility is limited and interest keeps ticking. 

That cost could force you to walk away.

There is a wealth of free information here.And Google the enemy method.

If you had the capital for the down payments, reserves, closing costs, etc., would you advise buying 4 SFHs or 2 duplexes.

The only benefit you'd get from a fideicomiso is asset protection so you have to decide if it's worth the cost.

@Roy Gottesdiener feel free to message me and we can talk more about your needs there.

I would agree with this - its probably too soon / not economical to do a cash-out refinance at this point - options for freeing up equity would probably be best served via HELOC or something to that effect

Three units to maintain.Although I need to do the math, scenario 1 strikes me as more economical as there are shared costs gained with a multifamily property.

Also, I'm not sure where you got your numbers from but I would recommend the following:1) Contact a realtor for a market analysis on your property, offer them $50 but they'll probably do it for free if you know them well.

On your last quote, I often tell people there are properties that they could get for free that they would lose money on.