And the builder competition is not a problem as I stated in the previous response.

We've reached out to the upstairs tenant and asked that they please try to be respectful to their neighbors, especially during late hours but it hasn't solved the problem as it still seems to be happening.

The contractor who build the building about 15 years ago did not put concrete under the shower pans as is required.I like bathtub with showers because they don't have the same problem as shower pans where shower pans have a life expectancy of 20 to 30 years, but a high percent of shower pans are not installed correctly and I've seen many brand new shower pans leak the same day they were installed and you don't see this problem with bathtubs.

Lansing has the same problem as Jackson.

@Kwame Essieh you can quit claim deed your properties into an LLC. 95% of the time, this won’t be a problem as long as the loans are still getting paid.

If you decide to do the LLC first and then the equity loan 2nd that shouldn't be a problem as it's similar to doing an owners draw (as in your LLC takes out the loan and then you owners draw the funds out of your LLC). 

The pets are not a problem as people have pets and we understand and have terms outlining the pet rules. 

I have a $2600 mortgage and I want to get ahead of this problem as soon as I can. 

That and it's the old slippery slope problem.  A

Doing a cashout would not really solve your problem as a whole, it sounds like.