I have 5+ buy and hold properties,  i have limited cash right now for another down payment, my debt to income ration hits almost the limit.

You still need to get the debt and equity but once you're open / finished with construction you can get grants to reimburse you. 500K-2M is typical for projects like yours.

She didn't pay rent the last 3 months, plus I paid all the lawyer fees. do I hire a debt collection service to follow them until I get my money back? 

We are currently paying down most of our bad debt to put us on a better position to buy, and gaining more knowledge in the process.

For example, I am a little concerned about some aspects of the business cycle recovery and a potential for a double-dip so I lean toward the safest part of capital stack which is debt (or low-debt equity).

DSCR (Debt Service Coverage Ratio) loans are a popular option for investors because they come with several key benefits that set them apart from traditional loans.

DEBT is for GROWING, debt-free is cruise-control. 

I am married, and my wife does not want to have anything to do with acquiring more debt or me being in another mortgage and I live in Arizona a community property state.

However, to get a bank loan you would need to have a debt service coverage ratio of about 1.2 (i.e. your income after expenses is 1.2 times the cost of mortgage payments).

Took out a bit more debt than I should have because my rev projections were a bit too high (at least for year 1).