Now, with our economy in turmoil and with so much uncertainty in our country's future, it seems highly unlikely our properties would appreciate enough in the next few years to consider refinancing again to take equity out

I know in parts of the country were they have to rely on title abstractors to physically go to the court house that takes time.. and what I see taking the most time in the big back east cities we work in.. is trying to figure out the UTL bills.. in our markets here other than the city of Portland the Bills did not attach to the property.. so it was not a worry.. it was just figuring out Lien positions and regular tax's and any other Liens that maybe on the property like IRS etc..   

I don't know about other investment options I did not reread it but i think you said you have 300,000 so get a multiplex for 1.2M in a high cash flow area of the country 

Sounds like my plan to play the long game and keep things as they are is the right path for me.

Everyone that has been sitting on the sidelines waiting to see "what the market does" for the last 5 years has continued to watch prices increase all around the country.

My question for everyone is, How are the courts in areas around the country? 

Sounds like ordering it on Amazon required the least amount of effort on their part and that's the path they chose. 

Ogden will not only benefit from all of the economic assets that Utah has to offer, but be further buoyed by the law of conformity.Of course, like many other places in the country, the market is overheated right now. 

Of course commercial property has taken a huge hit across the country, but has been hit especially hard in the Bay Area.

Hope to cross paths somewhere along this journey.