If your place is uninhabitable, tenants can end the lease or withhold rent until it’s livable, but I like to keep things friendly by offering a temporary rent reduction or helping them find a short-term solution.

A simple non-tech solution.

Trying to keep this as clean as possible. 

My AC unit has another 3-5 years before it’ll need to be replaced so I’m thinking this may be a clean exit before large big ticket items start needing attention in the next 5 years.

I know there are some PMS lite solutions out there made for low unit count portfolios but honestly I used ical and excel until about 15 units. 

I would use money from a HELOC that I have open to fund the down payment, but as @Scott Trench stated recently on the podcast, that is a short term solution, and I don't want to hold that $48k debt for more than a few months. 

Me personally, I’d check the contract and try to meet with both the architect and contractor to find a solution. 

I would recommend to buy in your local market for your first property... but I also realize every market is different and might not be affordable or the best solution. 

At that point, it's worth researching and finding a solution that better meets your needs.

Some of the simpler asset protection solutions would include the following:  having max funds allowed in qualified retirement plan or IRA rather than personal as retirement plans are exempt assets in Federal and most state bankruptcies; investing through an annuity if your state (Florida and Texas for example) exempts insurance policies and defines annuities as an insurance policy; taking advantage of maximum homestead exemption in your state; use of corporations or more popular LLC or Series LLC to limit liability to the entity holding the asset; reasonable liability insurance if available; separating asset ownership from asset management; etc.I can design a simple, cost effective asset protection strategy of up to about $5million with little cost IF the individual resides in Texas or Florida.