No matter if you invest in a 401K, IRA, Individual Stocks and Bonds, Real Estate, Gold, etc., you need goals.   

Insurance claims need licensed, bonded, and supersized insured contractors (mostly 1M GL, 1M WC, etc), not your 100k handyman GL.

If so, I would suggest 1/4-1/2 inch subfloors as a sound barrier and to strengthen the flooring.

Between a large chunk of savings bonds from my late grandparents and personal reserves I will be able to show at least $30,000 in reserves above and beyond my down payment. 

My company is not bonded in PA, however, there are companies out there that have all sorts of great non-QM mortgage products, like 12-24 month bank statements, asset valuation.  

We will need insurance and bond for the CCB (contractors license). 

Or you could wrap a bond around it but bond company will go after you once the lien has merit.

:-)  One of my most frequent private lenders is 78, and a number of my apartment investors are in their 70's.As @Dmitriy Fomichenko mentioned, the key to using your 401(k) money is to have it in a self directed IRA that lets you invest in assets other than stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. 

May be better off paying taxes :) or investing in municipal bonds to reduce.

For one, you can't hire someone to paint anything unless they are licensed with a C33 (painting specialty contractor for CA), bonded, and insured, plus have client/inveestor named as additional insured, very basic stuff, without these 3, the contract and liability will not be bounded together.