It may sound nice to pay a 5% management fee but the extra fees can add up to be more than the other company that charges 10% with no add-on fees.

Would I be better off leaving my current home alone (to pay it off sooner) and investing in 1 rental property with my $40-$50k or would it make more sense to pursue a cash out refi, convert back to 30 year mortgage, and see if I can purchase 1 or even 2 investment properties with the extra money? 

In some case our painter has had to do 2-3 coats in order to get the color and texture right on a flip house, which in turn will cost extra.

They could even gift extra money to you, so you control and manage it. 

It may sound nice to pay a 5% management fee but the extra fees can add up to be more than the other company that charges 10% with no add-on fees.

The reality is the opposite - if it's not in writing then the PMC doesn't have to provide the service or can charge extra for it.We have a 12 page management contract that we've added our real experiences to over the years, with the intent of protecting both us AND the landlord.

Most any platform with fast payments will charge either you or the tenant extra each month.

They applied for an additional three months of extra rent and we just received approval for that.

It may sound nice to pay a 5% management fee but the extra fees can add up to be more than the other company that charges 10% with no add-on fees.

Make sure that you're being extra conservative in your estimates and the money still works.