Westchester, although one of the hottest markets, has a ton of upside with opportunities for both cash-flow and equity. 2-4 family properties in Westchester are the 2nd most affordable in the NYC Metropolitan area (next to Suffolk County) making it easier to find cashflow opportunities when compared to the boroughs and other suburbs like Nassau.A client of ours in Westchester recently purchased a < $800K 2-family with a detached 3-car garage which brings in additional rental income - from a local business owner with commercial vehicles.

You may not be able to break the contract this year but would recommend getting additional estimates going forward if you feel it is expensive.

Any additional input would be great.

Additionally, applicants can (optionally) upload tax forms and bank statements for our review.If you're looking for a website you can utilize on your own @Bruce Woodruff mentioned a couple that are popular.

In addition to that, you could open up a credit card to get that credit history rolling.

A low LTV refi to get you some additional cash should be enough to clear this up.

IMO this is much too little additional return to put your personal residence at risk.  

You guys are smart but you feel like you accomplished what you had in mind and now need a goal/plan for what's next.

million in addition to their investors (who expect a reasonable rate of return) by keeping the rental rates at a fraction of the market rate?

In trying to be more helpful, I came up with two additional ideas:1.