AdditIonally, I already assumed we’d have to have a very thorough tenant screening process but I dIdnt want It to be to the point where we couldnt get anyone under lease.

Our annual expenses including taxes & insurance are $5k, and our tenants just signed a 2 year lease at $1900/month.

Either way, in order to get REFI and potentially take cash out now, before most bank's 6 or 12 month marks,  you'll need either a tenant in place or at least a letter of intent from a future tenant with a lease agreement and start date.  

Anyone know a good real estate attorney near the Portland OR area who understands lease options?

As I get closer I want to make sure i hav the right systems in place to give existing tenets and new tenets proper leases, give them my contact info and get an auto rent pay system in place.

When the lease ran up recently, we needed to do some work on the house. 

I know this story is a little different than your concern but the outcome should be the same.A few years ago we leased to a new tenant and she was adamant on not having our extremely trusted handyman back in her unit.

Furthermore, we renewed our 12-month lease just 2 months ago, so an FHA is not in our interest until next year.

(c) Prohibited transaction(1) General ruleFor purposes of this section, the term “prohibited transaction” means any direct or indirect—(A) sale or exchange, or leasing, of any property between a plan and a disqualified person;(B) lending of money or other extension of credit between a plan and a disqualified person;(C) furnishing of goods, services, or facilities between a plan and a disqualified person;(D) transfer to, or use by or for the benefit of, a disqualified person of the income or assets of a plan;(E) act by a disqualified person who is a fiduciary whereby he deals with the income or assets of a plan in his own interest or for his own account; or(F) receipt of any consideration for his own personal account by any disqualified person who is a fiduciary from any party dealing with the plan in connection with a transaction involving the income or assets of the plan.Purely my opinion here, but the between interpretation would seem to make sense as the proper intent of the code. 

It is a SFR currently leased through July 2019 that I'll be taking over.