At the end of the day, I still think it's worth it to go commercial via an LLC to protect yourself in the event of a tenant lawsuit.

You could also lose what you borrow and if you get into a lawsuit potentially more than the total cost of the purchase.

As you go along in this business you will find it's worth some money to build a reputation as a fair dealer,  and that lawsuits costs money and stress and time,  and are worth avoiding.  

In addition, there has been many group actions (law suits) that have been filed against the city.

No history of slip and fall lawsuits (if they sued others, they'll sue the LL for sure).  

Does the Contractor have any legal judgements, lawsuits, or arbitration proceedings pending or in the past?

Or, maybe you live in one unit or mother-in-law suite and rent out the main house/other unit.

I also called the law firm who processed the tenant lease agreements and they informed me that they could no longer speak to me about that Agency (I think they may be retained for pending lawsuits?).

An attorney cannot pierce it if you deed it over, and if the lawsuit happens while under LLC title & you've done a full separation of transactional play.

Will insurance cover this if there is a lawsuit?