If you are able to actively use the funds I would say start a real estate marketing company with it. 

*Prepare for high insurance costs by running a few properties by your STR insurance company before making a purchase.

@Denise CarringerMy preference is to go local - some community banks offer this type of service or local escrow companies, which is what I found, because they offer a higher level of service than most national.

Do you recommend making relationship with property management companies?

In order to have checkbook control, the IRA account will need to be at a trust company that will allow the IRA to invest in an LLC (where you will be the manager and your IRA will be member - an as manager you will have checkbook access to the LLC bank account).

You may run a company but you are not investing in real estate as you don’t own anything.

People have been dropped by insurance companies in wildfire areas and had to scramble to try to find insurance - some using California Fair Plan. 

If your escrow company allowed that to happen, you should go after them.

Curious if they named that company as they were the servicing company - so they were the ones who would be handling payoffs.... 

I have been invited to be a trainer for a few different training companies.