Stay on Bigger Pockets, listen and read and you'll get some education on the cheap. 

I've got a few more properties with a similar plan in mind—refinance, extract the equity, and use that to build toward my bigger target.The goal for me this year isn't just to buy more doors, but to make a strategic leap into larger-scale projects.

Check out this bigger pockets link below for that question. https://www.biggerpockets.com/guides/ultimate-real-estate-investing-guide

We are deciding between hiring a property management company, finding a full time handyman or a hybrid of hiring a property management company for our bigger buildings and using a handyman contracting company for the easier ones.

Quote from @Harish Verma: BTW the properties are listed here on Bigger pockets: https://www.biggerpockets.com/... 

I have been listening to Bigger Pockets podcast for a couple of months now and I am learning so much but still in the beginning stages of learning how to jump in to real estate investing.

Here on Bigger Pockets, the majority of investors want to get the best return on their money.  

Does anyone have a personal experience where they were sued for such an amount that umbrella insurance kicked in?

Bigger Pockets sent out an alternative investment article which included ATM investments as a suggestion. 

Management fees are steep, you're competing w/ bigger operators as well as mom & pop places - it's hard to get the personalized care needed, in my opinion, to be successful.