Prioritize your financial stability.

The rate might be .5% higher for the 30 year, but looking at it financially what if you took that $187/mo and invested it into the stock market at 7-9% returns? 

This is much lower than the costs associated with refinancing.Benefits of Mortgage RecastingLower Monthly Payments: The most immediate benefit is a reduced monthly payment, which can free up cash for other financial goals.Save on Interest: By reducing your principal balance, you’ll pay less interest over the life of the loan, potentially saving thousands of dollars.No Credit Check or Appraisal: Unlike refinancing, recasting doesn’t require a credit check, income verification, or home appraisal, making it a quicker and simpler process.Keep Your Current Interest Rate: If you have a favorable interest rate on your current loan, recasting allows you to maintain it while still lowering your payments.Drawbacks of Mortgage RecastingRequires a Lump Sum: Not everyone has the cash on hand to make a significant lump sum payment, which can make recasting inaccessible for some homeowners.Doesn’t Shorten Loan Term: While your monthly payments are lower, recasting doesn’t reduce the length of your loan.

You should start creating a pitch deck with a financial analysis / summary and market study to share with people to get them excited about the project. 

Not sure how many PMCs you've had bad experiences with, but we'll take exception to:"Then do a thorough research on tenant applicants (note: leaving this to a PM may be hazardous to your financial health)".BP seems to have more threads about screening mistakes by DIY landlords as opposed to PMCs.Now, if you'd have mentioned Maintenance, you'd get no argument from me:) Even the PMC industry acknowledges maintenance as one of the biggest challenges.Rereading my post, I kinda see how I sounded negative toward PMs.  

HighLevelAccounting & Finance: What tools make bookkeeping and financial tracking seamless?

A good real estate accountant can save them thousands of dollars by leveraging entity selection and formation, tax deductions, cost segregations, bonus depreciation and tax planning.I recommend that they find a tax accountant who specializes in real estate taxation, business taxation, financial planning and tax planning.I would also recommend that they look for a accountant willing to work with them throughout the year, who can help them strategize and who is responsive when they want to know the consequences of the financial decisions they are making throughout the year.Good luck.

., financial info, property condition)?

You'll have to look at the income and expenses to predict whether your cash flow will improve.

& how you become financially free is by letting whoever your renting to (I'm guessing that was a step also?)