We did not do a HELOC. Our lender allowed us to rewrite the first loan to roll all of the money into a single payment, which we were able to keep at the same amount we were previously paying, but we had to extend our loan from 15 to 20 years. We were able to pull 37% from our first property as a down payment on the latest property. We got the loan for 4.41 % for 36 months, then we will renegotiate after 3 years.
We don't manage any other properties, but we haven't ruled that out for the future! We love 4-plexes too! I think you get more "bang for your buck" so to speak! One property to maintain, etc. and the risk is spread out.