Also, that there was a new sheriff in town, I'm a former Army SGT, Military Police Officer, with combat experience, and that I don't tolerate shenanigans in my buildings.  

The theory behind getting started now instead of waiting for the crash is risk tolerance for the banks.

I do think tolerance for that kind of 5-yearly event will go down for many landlords, not to mention retail buyers.One other note on having money.

Another option, which has it's own risks and nuances is to take out a home equity line of credit to access more capital as there are products that loan up to 90% loan to value, compare to the 75% cash out refi.If neither of those options seem appealing or outside of your risk tolerance, I would follow the advice from above to live in the property for 1-2 years then rent it out. 

If you have a house that is a duplex or something with separate bathroom and kitchen areas, that helps provide separation that makes house hacking more tolerable. 

It also comes down to risk tolerance. 

This is all dependent on your goals and risk tolerance but money is cheap right now so it's a good time to leverage it.

Everyone has a different level of risk tolerance, and different opinions on the matter.

This was a risk tolerance decision, versus a purely Profit/Cash outlook. 

I would rather pay an extra $200 a year for that protection, just depends what your risk tolerance is, $500,000 would certainly be better.