If you can't put that money to work for you at a much higher rate of return, paying down the mortgage might be a good alternative.

@Michelle Dunn a "handyman special" should have a much higher cash on cash return than 4% IMO.

I am considering a 1031 exchange of an investment property I have in Los Angeles (one of four) out of State to get better cash flow returns, as I have a lot of equity.

Offer to buy an investor coffee in return for just sharing their process, their thoughts and their experiences. 

I went into Home Depot thinking I wanted ceramic tile, but the associate who helped me seemed to think click-lock vinyl would be a better option.I don't know anything about flooring, and figured I'd just hire it out, but I'm not opposed to DIY if the hourly return is high enough.

I'd like to earn decent return on it, and like the idea of financing real estate rehabs, either as a partner (the money), private lender, or hard money lender.

The last option we have is to add $50K to the raise, which lowers returns, obviously, but not by a lot.

I'm not sure how I would include that in calculations, but it seems that despite having cash flow, you wouldn't have an actual return on your money until you bridged that gap.

Potential high growth returns but likely more management headaches? 

So in the end, you either get the property or get a high return on the investment. 2.