Some providers will leave it to the investor to make up the gap if the appraisal is low. 

We never hired a management company, as it was not cost effective with rent we have been charging and it is only one house.Another question: If I do wait til Fall 2019 to sell, should I rip the carpet (up the stairs, living room hallways, bonus and bedrooms—2600sf house) and leave floors bare, (it’s light colored, horrible carpet) to allow buyers to add their own?

if they dont leave, the bank is not going to come to underwrite you another loan.

They always talk about how they love the place and don't want to leave.

You could evict, create a pet lease and charge for the dog, make tenant get rid of the dog if they want to stay, or request tenant break lease and leave without eviction. 

If it is universal that only leaves me with one more home to buy before I need to start looking at other funding options. 

If he doesn't keep good records, then you have a bit of a problem, and will have to calculate it yourself.Finally, with all the information you've collected, you determine if it is a good deal or not.Based on what you listed above here's an example ballpark monthly budget:Principle & interest: ~$1,000 ($195k loan @ 5%)Taxes & insurance: $300-500/mo (depending on your locality)Utilities: $200/mo for water (most 4-units has the owner paying water)Vacancy: $140 (based on 95% occupancy at $2800/mo)Maintenance/Capital expences: $280 (standard 10%)Management: $280 (10%)Total: ~$2,300-2,500, leaving you with a profit of around $100/door, with only $10k invested. 

If you are living in the condo and have decent income and ok debt to income ratio I would get a conventional loan on a rental property and leave the condo alone. 

Just make sure you use a 1031, and leave enough for the down payment on the new place. 

But then I thought, if I dispute it, it could bring my property taxes up (0.79% assessed value in CA).Should I try to dispute the improvement vs land value or just leave it as is?