However, leveraging your money with a 30-year mortgage could give you the chance to buy more properties, increasing your overall returns and diversifying your investments.

Madison is also poised for larger developments where you can rezone land and increase density.

Quote from @Jr Miller: The lack of human interaction increases our number of showings.

It would seemingly also increase what I could get for rent, has anyone found that to not be the case?

There has been an increase in gurus selling seller financing training programs because interest rates have risen.

I definitely recommend that you seek out a Certified Cost Segregation Professional so that you are confident in the quality of the work performed and the deliverables produced.

Rental income would be $12-14k per year, so your netting $1500-3500 the first year before lowering the interest cost over time and increased rent (rising at 8% per year).So for $0 out of pocket you get another unit, equity growth(over time), income that grows and you created a unit of housing that didn't exist before.

I normally just do new construction on these pemb, so I have never done an actual modification of an existing pemb to increase the square feet. 

are rent increases realistic?

I am an insurance broker in Colorado and can confirm that most insurance companies are increasing to minimum 8% deductibles on most condos.