The landlord, my friend is elderly  and on a fixed income struggling with the property tax payments and utility costs of the unit now .

You're going to have to utilize his income to get loans...

People prefer going the syndication route also because they can utilize and leverage other peoples money and knowledge to grow their business as well. 

Ridgeview was acquired from 'mom & pop' owners and will go through an awesome value-add strategy by renovating the interior units, adding amenities, billing back utilities to tenants, and implementing a professional property management company to improve inefficiencies.

You can utilize several options. 

Finally I've done several house hack deals recently utilizing a 5% down conventional ARM loan to purchase a 3 unit as well as a 4 unit property.Starting locally by house hacking is a safer investment than going out of state.

I've seen teachers, firemen, software engineers and all sorts of people utilize both strategies successfully.

The Income approach will utilize a gross rent multiplier, versus an income capitalization approach (cap rate) approach used in commercial.But back to Dave's question: are there really no other duplex to fourplex in the area?  

But when you find that strategy that fits you the best and that you enjoy as a sport or hobby, it is usually the one you will prevail with the most.

Prices on everything is pretty crazy right now, but 100k+ seems expensive.I can imagine how you could get there but it would probably be utility driven (Water, Sewer, power).