You don't have anything to take I assume since you don't have anything to put into the project.

Most mortgage companies will not call loan due if payments are current but you do run that risk and need to be prepared to payoff or refi at a moments notice.

If it weren’t for some contractor issues, we would have netted around $60K, but it ended up closer to $45-50K (I don’t have the exact numbers on hand).

Indeed, to stay in compliance with fair housing, you need to treat each tenant the same, so that's something to keep in mind. 

We have an opportunity coming up from a family member who is willing to sell us my childhood home for what they got it for (240k) and the comps in that neighborhood are 600k+.

But if you give it to a chef, he can create wonderful culinary dishes. whether you chose to use it or not, it's totally up to you.

If you consistently analyze properties, recognizing a good deal will be much easier when it shows up.

Ask your employer if you can have your pay split up into three deposits, one to investments savings, one to your checking account for personal use on a daily basis, and one to an emergency account you can tap into so you don't have to tap into your investment savings.

Talk this over with a lawyer because under current state law, you will not be able to evict due to the cold.

So if you discount a small amount to get rolling, that is something that can work, but don't want to stay low for long.You will start to get the dregs staying at your place and they can do some real damage to the place.