Deals don’t lie—numbers do. We put three real multifamily opportunities on the table and let the math decide: a fully occupied five-unit with suspiciously low expenses, a ten-unit limping at 80 percent occupancy, and a 2022-built thirty-unit that pairs scale with clean financials. Using a clear framework—verify income, normalize expenses, estimate debt service, and translate into cash-on-cash—we reveal how small shifts in vacancy, management, and capex can flip a “good” cap rate into a headache or turn a steady performer into a standout.

First, we test the five-unit’s thin expense line and show how one vacancy can erase monthly profit. Then we tackle the ten-unit, where stabilization is the whole story: inconsistent rent data, no management baked in, and a path to break-even that only works if you fill units and enforce market rents. Finally, we dig into the thirty-unit new build. With T12s showing meaningful other income, a reasonable expense ratio, and room for a realistic 100-dollar rent lift, the cash-on-cash improves and the potential value creation over a decade becomes hard to ignore.

Along the way, we share practical underwriting habits: model vacancies even at “100 percent,” add third-party management even if you plan to self-manage, and run sensitivities on interest rates, expenses, and rent growth. We also talk about partnerships, investor structures, and why scale can smooth out the noise that wrecks smaller deals. Ready to sharpen your buy box and pick better properties? Hit play, subscribe for more deal breakdowns, and tell us which deal you’d chase—and why.