Therefore, I have a hard time committing to a house hack which contributes greatly to my problem of raising capital for a conventional mortgage with a 20%+ down payment instead of alternatives such as an FHA. 

When BRRRR was really popularized rates were very low so the holding costs were much better.There are a lot of local real estate investing meetups that you guys can attend.

I wanted to reach out and ask what other alternatives to Stessa are out there.

Things have to go really bad from here, as I see it, for the office to underperform alternatives in the next few years, from a cash flow perspective. 

Alternatively if you feel confident in the higher value, I would ask if the lender is open to doing an independent appraisal ordered by an AMC instead of a desktop one. 

As an alternative, would a cash-out refinance, a home equity loan, or a HELOC make sense for you?

I would not invest in real estate with a retirement account.Its too much of a headache and likely not that much better as an investment alternative within a retirement account1) Real Estate provides tax benefits for individuals who own them.

ADUs seem to be really popular in California, depending on location. 

Alternative options include offering a significant down payment, a lease-option agreement, a joint venture, or a deferred closing to align with John's timeline.

Popular examples include Airbnb, Uber, and Buffer's early-stage pitch decks, available online for free.