1500 Well, depending on how much your reputation is worth, I would recommend that you do your best to get him his $1500 back soon as possible and never do business with him again. 

I'm not a big fan of mixing family and business because it can destroy relationships.My favorite recommendation is the one nobody wants to hear: work like a dog, save up, and buy things you can afford to pay for.

I'm having trouble finding a provider that will provide me a quote and looking for recommendations.

Any course prep recommendations also appreciated. 

We have a bay-side waterfront property under contract in Panama City Beach. This is a new market for us.  Our current insurer only writes policies for < $1M.  ARV on this property will be in the $1.6M range.  Anyon...

Highly recommend you connect with a local expert such as @Josh Green!

Does anyone have any recommendations?

My brother, who owns a business, actually recommended keeping the house and to use HELOC for the second home.

I recommend to my clients to use the SFH markets to generate short term income and wait to catch a 2 - 4 unit property and when they pop up throw those in the portfolio. 

This is what I recommend for you to get started in your real estate journey:1.