I don't know how to fund this endeavor or what the best choice would be for us.

Please realize that I am not saying your agent will find you a deal in three days...that's foolish especially in an uber competitive market where we are frequently seeing multiple offer situations that inflate strategically priced homes.

I've only made ONE poor choice over the years and nothing on paper will tell you the applicant has no social skills and can't get along with other tenants.

I'm just trying to strategically learn and act to achieve my goals without getting caught in analysis paralysis

Another choice is to partner with some one for the 20%. 

When you look at property you will see the difference from strategic picture taken to actual investment potential.

At a time when the governing political party is destined to dial back health care access in the name of liberty, you want to be strategic about that.

I feel, for now, that I'm a bit to early to discuss it in depth with them as I would come across as a novice looking for funding and guidance rather than a strategic partnership when I'm more prepared.

Once that is done, you have no choice but to vacate.

Converting your term policy to some type of cash value would be poor financial choice, your premiums could easily increase 10-fold for the same coverage.You can use your Roth and Traditional IRA (and 401k) to setup and moved funds into self-directed IRA, which would give you the freedom to invest into any investment opportunity.