It's not worth hiring a lawyer but as you suggested, small claims court may be an option IF you hired them in your personal capacity OR if your jurisdiction allows LLC owners to go to small claims and represent the LLC in court (many, most?

Hi Daniel, I would definitely keep your options open in terms of finding the right accountant that could be of great assistance. 

If you're open to expanding your options, you may want to check the Columbus OH market. 

When I have some free time, I'll research other options that won't cost a fortune for the small guy.

Sounds to me option 1 will be best though.   

@Isaac TerryIn terms of it being worthwhile, just like most other markets out of state if the barrier or entry is too high where you live, the landlord laws are not favorable where you live, and you are looking for positive cashflow then Cleveland can be a good option.

To leverage the equity for financing my next deal, a second mortgage seems like a more cost-effective option.

Especially in a more competitive market where the options are plentiful.

Now we are mostly scaling our business with larger communities but I've used many different creative finance strategies including seller finance, private lending, hard-money, collateral from other properties, and lease-options. 

Investors are already on board with the options weve got, just shopping for the best option.