Its a nice little cheat/loophole on the mortgage side that can help afford a larger home pice and increase your chances of getting a home or other loans.If you have any questions feel free to reach out I am always happy to help and go over the basics.

They've increased the price several times in the last few years. 

How are the sellers being protected, in the event things change, vacancies increase and mortgages can't be paid? 

However, San Diego is an extreme case.However rents increase fast in San Diego.  

Cheap money and low rates produce euphoria, which increases flow of money to an asset, which pushes up the price to uninvestable levels.I think it's going to get worse than better in the short term.Gino

The 401k is a valuable asset but its my thought that I can use this asset to further increase my portfolio by putting that money to better use.

The property manager should be involved before you buy any property to give input on due diligence, how to increase income and reduce expenses, and to make repairs or improvements to maximize occupancy.Excellent property management is critical to your success before, during, and when planning to sell or refinance.To your success!

He abandoned trying to scale.Learning from this experience when my partner and I decided we wanted to double our net income, we realized it would take a increase of 2 1/2 time our volume and probably need to triple our deal flow.  

You already mentioned Mid term, which can be a great way to increase cash flow.

Who cares about lifetime interest costs, except to the extent you can easily lower them (refinance to a lower interest rate) to increase your cashflow.