I'd like an area that I feel comfortable living in, and that would attract an acceptable pool of tenants.

@Peter Bowen Great input, i have been trying for years to pencil the numbers on a multi's to make money even close to my singles, i think one of my hold backs is my own risk tolerance/debt adversity,  and I will not do partners, so its me and my wife. i currently am  running 23% debt on $1.1MM portfolio, and have set an internal cap of 40% I know this goes against most common belief, but its what i am comfortable with.

Living in Denver is expensive, I started blowing through cash faster than I was comfortable with.

I'm not pushing you here, but if crime is low and you are comfortable walking the area talking to residents (good idea by the way), it seems like you are overly cautious looking for other reasons to kill the opportunity. 

Not many 4plexes on the market right now, I saw one yesterday that has a vacant unit but it wasn't somewhere I would feel comfortable living unfortunately.

It kind of depends on where you are in life and which strategy you feel comfortable with. 

Bottom line is that I'm still comfortable buying here but it's only at a price point that takes into account the significant repairs I know I will encounter over the long run.

In order to make the aforementioned possible, we have chosen to go with remove the formal dining room since they are so passé these days and enlarge the kitchen and incorporate it into the family room.

I asked him what he really needs out of this deal, and he now feels that he needs at least $2,000 a month for him and his wife to live comfortably.

Whatever you decide make sure its something you're comfortable with.