Four of the seven would have solid cashflow and are in a growing community / region so I feel comfortable with potential for future appreciation as well.

The process is too complicated though to be streamlined for everyone to be comfortable.

Again, I'm not going to compromise the health of my tenants or put them in any situation that they don't feel comfortable with, but I'm not going to settle for extended vacancy if I don't have to, therefore, I'm looking for creative ideas to close the gap so everyone wins.

I have now 6 different quotes and my question regarding the amount was answered 3 times by 'whatever you feel comfortable with'...

If you are not comfortable renovating a property, turn-key may be the better option. 

A 2,000 sq.ft. home with two bedrooms can fit five people more comfortably than a 500 sq.ft. apartment with two bedrooms.

The buyers agent just notified me that the buyer is backing out now because he was using his 401k money to retire with and now that he has lost 35-40% he is not comfortable moving to a new location and buying a house.

Biggest consideration will be finding a quad in a C neighborhood that passes the “am I comfortable moving my family here” test.

Also recommend driving through the neighborhoods to get a feel for what you are comfortable with.

But ultimately it comes down to what you're comfortable with.