You'd only need an ID if you have some specific style or unique circumstance you were going for.

You have several dynamics going on that aren't for the faint of heart: expense limitation and proration under IRC Sec 280A, and unique tax treatment under the passive activity loss rules and general depreciation system to name a few.

My husband and I have a somewhat unique decision to make in the future. 

But it only gives another reason to consult with your CPA as each case is unique.

@Angela Smith That's a unique situation and I'm glad it's working for you!

You dont want to be too unique if you have a 3000sqft 4b3b in an area the has mostly 1800sqft 3b1b this doesn't nessasary mean you have more value in that neighborhood.

Being able to control that your project is going to be unique and does not look like anything else without having to convince an owner of partners is very appealing to us.

The ones I do find usually do not look vacant or if they do are not distressed.I am aware that the odds are against me as they simply exist in smaller quantities and are highly sought after but are there any unique strategies for tracking down those multi's when cruising for cash flow?

There are other unique ways we will be working with labor and the business model to provide an efficient set of systems but thats not necessary to talk about right now. 

I went through multiple approval processes with big banks, but ultimately, I needed the flexibility of a small, local, entrepreneur focused bank that was willing to work within the limitations of our unique structure (our project LLC has two Managing Member LLCs and one individual as the "Owners").