I also need information about reliable companies that can be used as a third-party for the exchange.

Has been a huge headache for the bank and insurance company.

As someone else mentioned there will also be additional expenses when you bring on a property management company.

moving it to an LLC will not do much for you in the way of asset protection OR taxes (double check that with a cpa, everyone's tax picture is different). most people lean towards the LLC thing for legal protection, but a single-member LLC is a thin veil that's easily pierced. you'd be paying LLC fees & paying another LLC tax return prep fee, for what i'd say is nothing. if you do want to transfer the deed to an LLC anyway, you'd do a 'quit claim deed' with a title company or real estate attorney. if the mortgage lender ever says something you'll just give them proof that it's a single-member LLC and the one member is you (the original borrower). 

You have seen it for 3 years in your daily lives, when you go to the store, or buy a used car, try to buy a home, order parts for your widget company etc…So in summary, prices are here to stay and we need more homes to be built, likely catalyzed by proper incentives / less onerous regulation.

I used my emergency funds, 401k loan, pulled from my Roth IRA to be able to put the 20% down to get it.

Currently I have a traditional IRA in my Fidelity account sitting in cash that I would like to use to invest in a cre syndication or maybe a note or debt fund... but first I would need transfer funds into a self directed IRA with a company like Equity Trust.

I have my broker's license and I still use my longtime realtor to show me properties; I just needed my broker's license to set up our property management company, and I also get to use it for full-time real estate professional purposes at tax time (I'm retired); I don't use it for looking at properties or anything of that sort. 

His primary home is also in it's own revocable trust.I don't believe he has any asset in his own name, everything in separate trusts.I believe on each trust he is the trustee with his son as the first named beneficiary.He also carries A LOT of insurance, uses a top property management company and all of his properties are in higher-end areas.I was curious, if he's involved in a lawsuit related to one of his properties - I know the trustee has to be identified and usually the target of the suit, but are the properties in his other separate trusts protected.

In most cases the company that loaned you the money will report it to the 3 credit bureaus but this case is different.