But his website is a complete mess and hasn't worked correctly in almost 2 years so it's impossible to find the status of your investments.

I do however agree with you that there’s no one size fits all approach and depending on the type of business that’s operated and location, the correct strategy may vary. 

After operating 1 rental for 2 years and another for just a few months, I just got notification from the code enforcement at my municipality (whom I had visited in person) that I didn't file a paper correctly and fines are possible.

This is a whole new era than 2010-2020, you're going to have to come correct not just straight spec.And you're not making 4.5% on your HYSA--that's gross. 

You are looking at it correctly, as others mentioned trying to avoid a PG is challenging, especially when starting out. 

Congrats on that, but let's correct some things.

1) Make sure STR is allowed. 2) Get more and the correct forms of insurance to go with your umbrella policy. 3) Skip the LLC. 

What are my options for correcting this situation?

For years i have had a portfolio policy with Nationwide for my commercial plazas but they are not renewing me this year as they now require all buildings with a food use to be fully sprinklered (which i do not have).

However dependent upon taxable income you could get away with a pretty low tax bill due to favorable capital gains tax rates.Be sure to work with a qualified intermediary and a tax professional to ensure you comply with all 1031 exchange regulations and to be sure you keep basis correct as all a 1031 does is defer your gain.Happy to help run some numbers or do some basic analysis for you if you would like.