Use a mortgage broker and let them shop the loan market for you.

My father and his brother currently own a shopping plaza with 6 units.

A lot of times they don't sell unit lower properties, so I would avoid the big shops and see if you can find a local brokerage on loopnet and call and have a conversation with someone there.

The loan we were shopping around for was only for $350k on a commercial property.

Keep things simple, do not create any payroll for him and focus on making more money.Now, if he makes $75k net, which is after expenses - then he needs to consider an S-corporation and W2 payroll for himself.Bookkeeping is simple, really: record everything he spends for business in any form that is simple for him: old-fashioned notepad, Excel or Google Sheets if he knows how to use them or apps like Expensify or TaxBot.

I shopped around and got a bunch of quotes and have narrowed it down to 3 options that only differ in the deductible.

I think crime rate, school district, location (proximity to freeways, shopping, grocery) etc. is important, is there anything else I should look for?

I would not pay her mortgage while you shop for a house, it's not your debt. 

It is good to note that there are many private flood options out there and it is a good idea to shop them all to make sure you are getting the best coverage and premium.

Manchester is close to Hartford and has a lot of shopping, etc.