Ima gonna do that) mentality, hire the experts in their field and focus on BUILDING the business.

As an example of why you can't predict appreciation goes up with a single factor like interest rates, just look at the last 10 years - most areas have experienced tremendous growth in appreciation yet interest rates have stayed low.It sounds like your goal is to buy and hold, in which case I would just focus on buying in good locations, make sure you have strong cash flow, and lock in your interest rate with 30 year mortgages. 

From there, I intend to pursue a buy and hold strategy, ideally focusing on small multi-family units.

The trick is to focus on the damaged area and hold still for two seconds so you get a good, clean shot of it that can be saved as a photo.

Also, I am focusing on the DuPage market so far because of my accessibility. 

I saw your profile and I'm also a singer/songwriter but have turned my focus primarily on real estate.

The confusion comes from focusing on an incomplete sentence about HELOC: "not deductible."

or just rip off the band aid and do it all right away?

Any recommendations or referrals for a real estate agent focusing on Ft.

Any recommendations or referrals for a real estate agent focusing on Ft.