I bought a 4plex with a friend. We did it out of state. We lucked out getting the property at a great time and the property itself was quite good. We had pretty bad luck with pretty much everyone in the area, though. I don’t know if it’s a symptom of the town or the fact we’re out of towners but it has been surprisingly bad.
The most important thing is the property manager. I would interview people, get recommendations, and check reviews. We had arguably the worst property manager possible and it set us back thousands of dollars.
In our situation, we are lower-income housing so there is a LOT of nonsense. I’d make sure you have a decent reserve if you’re planning on doing this for nonsense. We lost quite a bit the first year and without a reserve I don’t know what would have happened.
Hope that helps. If you have any other questions, let me know.