If you were renting to an only a couple as a long term tenant and they beat each other up (domestic violence) your liability is minimal.  

Look for a local credit union that can offer a cash-out refinance once the work is done, ideally with minimal seasoning.

However, if you minimize your vacancy exposure, you may find (just like I have witnessed for years) that it is a much easier and more beneficial strategy.

Holding Costs - My experience with owner financing is that I can buy and sell a property in a month or less since the rehab is minimal and I'm providing the financing.

We try to set up at least 3 timeslots each week when we can schedule all the showings to minimize the tenant interuptions.If they won't cooperate or cancel too many scheduled showings, we warn them we will pursue collections to the fullest extent of the law. 

For my personal residence - yes, i would love to own it free and clear as it's not an investment but rather liability which I want to minimize as much as possible.  

Items such as this that could be easily replaced by almost any LL at a very minimal cost, will turn into a $135 aggravation at best if you overlook it!

Starting small, like with a duplex, is a good way to get your feet wet and minimize risks.Good luck!

Our website was just OK, our email campaigns were hit and miss, our conference presence was fairly minimal. 

I've asked my clients a similar question and have developed tools for them to minimize this, but I find there are a few different types of clients.Manager managed - these folks have no issues as they simply upload their year end statement from their property manager, their 1098 mortgage statement and any other one-off expenses they may have paid for outside of the management company.