during inflation for example. 

It could create an opportunity to buy property subject to from people who bought recently and can't hang on nut that is another discussion.On a macro level the one thing the Feds hate more than inflation is deflation, so I am not exception a big drop in housing prices.There are STR's all over phoenix but rules vary from city to city and most communities have HOA's so be careful of that as well.I am not in the STR market but Phoenix in general has a very seasonal housing market as a lot of northerners come down here for the winter.  

Now I am sitting with a load of cash and I am worried we took out the funds to not even be able to use it especially with inflation staring at my bank account, ha.

Not to mention rampant inflation and whole myriad of other issues going on right now.

I didnot dive into the detail of how they adjusted for inflation, dothey adjust for footing types 18 inch versus 48 inch for us, roadconstruction (concrete for us).

They are blaming the inflation and permit delays.

The one thing that is real is inflation, and likely from a true fiscal sense, paying down your existing mortgage faster would be more like putting your money into cash, which would essentially be losing value.  

I think what we like about moving and downsizing from where we live is it will cut our living expenses in half, especially in a time where inflation is accelerating at a rapid pace.

I’ve also considered pursuing wholesaling and putting off my investing dreams for now considering the drastic inflation we are having here.

Rising interest rates, runaway inflation, the potential housing bubble.