The macroeconomics state is impacted by international markets across all industries.

The better play may be to find companies tied to housing, with low or no dividends, that are currently victims of other factors, such as the threat of tariffs/trade war and how that alone would impact their bottom line. 

Here there are several cost seg study options, and the level of study (which impacts the fee) you request depends on numerous factors; your basis value of property, what are your improvement plans, what is your hold period, etc.

That property has appreciated enormously, but the rental return is lousy because I’m taxed crazily as a foreign resident

I agree that, in some cases, the tax assessment on a house will be low and thus your pre-rehab purchase price (which is used to immediately reset the tax assessment), won’t have an impact.

The guy who can start today definitely sucks at everything.When we purchased the house, we didn't anticipate all of the large "under-the-surface" repairs that would be needed that wouldn't impact the appraisal value and those were the biggest expenses that bit us.

You may also want to consider the lifestyle impacts of single family vs. a duplex. 

Hey Jeff,There can always be factors that would impact the advice I would give, but the general rule would be to try and hold your assets in separate entities as much as possible - especially when they are different asset classes (fix and flip holds different liabilities than commercial.)

The company should stand by their product, but limit their exposure from acts of God and tenant caused damage, which should not be covered under a warranty for good reason: They would not be able to adequately forecast the company’s performance and overhead costs, which would impact not only their clients, but their employees as well.A turnkey provider that follows this approach is more likely to be experienced and built for longevity.3.

They should merely be providing you their best options available for your needs and not attempting to influence your decision making.If your goal is to expand your portfolio, as good as having that additional cash flow sounds, it completely counteracts the option to grow as it will significantly impact the cash you have on hand for future down payments.A HELOC or home equity loan is a cool arrow to have in your quiver, but with rates on those products being higher than almost any conventional loan at this point, I would use it sparingly.