Take it with a  grain of salt as most are usually approximations based on algorithms which use many variables

There are a lot of variables.

I know there are probably some cheaper and I know there are more expensive GC's out there, but these should be good ballpark costs, although there are a ton of variables of course. 

It is true that certain policies will accumulate significant cash value, but you either have to put in several thousands for a certain amount of years and let it season for a bit (Life Insurance Retirement Plan) or you pay your monthly/annual premium for quite a while and wait until you're in your 60's or 70's+ to have access to a good amount of cash value (Variable Universal Life).

I feel there’s too many variables that can come in play.

Make a table and compare, as interest rates and years of fixed vs variable rates will be all over the place.  

To be good at Section 8, you have to understand what you are getting into, how the system works, the variability of tenancy, and you need to be on it all the time.I think people keep asking about this because the government pays you.

As far as the quality of advice at a bigbox store - it is highly variable.

Walk away.The cost is variable.

Taxes and insurance will be the biggest variables on the expense side.