Hi Daniel,You're in a great position with $400K in home equity but cautious about its impact on cash flow.

The shorter the prepayment term has an impact on increasing the rate.4.

Using a service to report rent debts to Credit Bureaus can be very effective at recovering those debts because it can impact their credit report and score for years to come, typically 6-7 years depending on location. 

Hi Alex,You're right that what you do with the sale profits (like paying off another loan) doesn’t impact your capital gains tax treatment.

If the property is paid in cash and later a mortgage is secured does it impact the UBIT question above ?    

While renovations and other expenditures can be capitalized (and in some scenarios deducted) when you classify property as a rental, that might not be a significant impact if you intend to sell the property soon and can qualify for the 2 out of 5 year deduction for primary residences. 

One thing I didn't mention earlier, but came up again is the impact of CapEx savings.

Additionally, how will it impact the sale prices?

What's most impactful about truly learning neighborhoods is the ability to identify a "C" neighborhood that has the potential or is actively becoming a "B" neighborhood.

Reach out to the local tax assessor to understand how a sale might impact your future property tax bills and reach out to an insurance broker to get an insurance indication.