I own a co-op where me and my family live, perhaps I can refinance that as well, I Probably can get about 50K from that.At what point should I consIder owning the properties free & clear?

It's good to see someone start on the outskirts of real estate as an employee and work their way into the heart of it.

- Any tips/suggestions on what type of insurance to buy for a Condo and the level of insurance needed?

I want to continue down this path even more so now that I've moved back to LA from Denver, Colorado and keep making friends of the REI space.

You can buy great looking laminate at $1-2sqft at Lowes, plus underlayment (definitely install underlayment/vapor barrier, it helps with the water problem and also helps the floor absorb minor leveling imperfections).   

The debt to income levels that is.

. - Useful to get some high level info about crime rates, schools ... all the basics when selecting an area.

Get more trust out of your investors first by being performance based and then when you're more experienced, everyone will expect a certain level of service and will be more comfortable with something different. 

I would like to start investing in like a multi-family apartment but is this even possible given my situation as i don't have a "stable source of income/verified employment" i saw things like no doc mortgages, co-signing on a mortage etc. and things like that but is there another way to go around investing given my situation? 

You need to order a title sea ch from a title co.