While two reps from the same firm will quote you the same rate, their ability to execute the loan can be night and day different.In regards to pros and cons ... think of the lending world as falling into 3 primary buckets: 1) traditional banks and credit unions (ie, Wells, BofA, Chase, etc), 2) mortgage banks (ie, Caliber, Quicken, Fairway, etc), and 3) mortgage brokers.Traditional Banks: (they do loans and hold deposits)Pros: because they tend to do such a large volume of loans, they are able to offer low rates ... they have the ability to do portfolio loansCons: very slow turn times - if you need to close quickly, they're generally unable to perform ... they tend to use national appraisal management companies and appraisal issues are common in competitive markets.Mortgage Banks: (they only do loans - no deposits)Pros: have the ability to close loans much faster - some of the local mortgage banks that we work with on purchases will routinely close loans in less than 14 days ... they often setup their own appraisal management companies and are able to improve the appraisal quality by ensuring the use of local appraisers.Cons: while they should be very competitive with their rates, they're not going to be the absolute lowest ... portfolio loans are generally not an option - they need to sell their loans right away so they can get that money back to lend it out again.Mortgage Brokers:Pros: they will have access to a bunch of different lenders and loan products, so they can submit your info to whichever one is offering the best terms at that moment.Cons: they have no control/influence over the underwriters or the timeframes ... they're generally forced to use national appraisal management companies, so appraisal issues are more commonHope this is helpful and good luck with the refi!

People routinely pay $50 per month or more for storage, so a climate controlled space would have some value for that purpose too.

Will the property need routine gardening? 

There are cracks and weeds need to be routinely removed.

We just recently met for the first time, but there was a good turnout of beginning and experienced investors, and there is talk of making it a routine meetup, perhaps once a month or so.

Yard care, snow removal, management fee, repairs, routine maintenance, insurance, taxes, reserves for major issues (hot water tanks, furnace, roof, etc). 

., eviction, routine maintenance, repairs, turnover, suspicious tenant behavior), you're going to wish you had a local property manager to sort through things and save you from the guess work of managing your affairs from afar.  

We routinely have out-of-state clients get appraisals on their properties here with us, and there's a 98% chance the appraisal is going to come back at a number no one else agrees with.

what strategies are you currently using to acquire properties and what is your routine before knowing which properties to go after?

If you figure out how much you can comfortably save every month, (let's say 1k hypothetically) you take that cash right out of your paycheck and right into your savings routinely.