Thanks Form tax perspective, your LLC can make payments directly to bank and get tax deductions or you making a payment will qualify for deductions as well.The SMLLCs are disregarded for tax purpose, so both ways are ok. 

Understand that any closing costs you shift to them, will lower the Net value of your offer.

How should we structure the deal from a financing perspective?

This is perspective from someone who has lived in the area for 40yrs.

I'm an active investor in Houston and also a real estate attorney so I can give you another perspective in real estate. 

You have a unique combination of experience which can give a different perspective on real estate.

From a management and maintenance perspective, it seems like it would be more straightforward to handle four tenants at a single property as opposed to four separate properties.My primary question is:As I do research, I may find a handful or as few as one available property in a particular city.

It has to make sense from a business perspective & long term goals. 

I really appreciate your perspectives and will discuss further with my wife. 

I'm actually in the exact same boat as I'm looking at 5+ units in the Bay Area and still in the early stages.Regarding it being too simple - I think this perspective is a great one on the forced appreciation model within a seller's market: Trust that there are others who are trying to do exactly what you are, and that gets factored into people bidding up the purchase price and the compressed cap rates.