Sure, you could invest in C-/D properties and get a 2+% ROI, but you also might end up in an unsafe area.....If you are a buy and hold investor and you plan to keep the 1/2 of the duplex that you own I would consider buying the other 1/2 and protecting your investment.

You're right, my resume wouldn't be enough for you to be attracted to any deal I would possibly have; I heard that word a lot during the conference is that a Key Player or Key Principle? 

Replacing the nasty carpet in my C-D neighborhood 3 BR, 2 BA single-family house.

Hi Viraj,I'm sure Stetson knows the insurance players better than me but I worked with Travis Thawley at Chapman on two recent properties and found him to be responsive and easy to work with.

Some of the bigger players will want a longer initial term and that's fine.  6% seems high to me unless it's a difficult location to lease out.  

Avoid the north east area as a whole unless you’re looking for c/d neighborhoods with tough management.

When I was trying to get into commercial multifamily real estate, I found local players place all kinds of barriers and try to convince me I cannot do it without them.

You can park the funds in an online savings account, CD, or US Treasury and earn ~5% (versus paying down low cost debt). 

When you are a smaller player with not much equity I wouldn't worry about it too much especially if properties are residential.

I could probably research mortgages by bank name and go with the local banks where I know the players involved and can identify a couple properties that would be a candidate just to walk myself through the exercise.