Only mortgages as debts which are covered by rents.

Well you received reply's from the top heavy hitters in the passive game here on BP.choosing wisely is key as noted.. real estate debt can be a great spot for the busy professional.

Quote from @Levi Perl: Hi,Curious if anyone has what to say in terms of how to calculate which one is more worth it: to cash out refi on a Long term rental now at 70% LTV, and walk away with X amount of positive cash AFTER paying all debt, (X is a positive number and significant amount for me), which will allow me to potential get another long term rental and grow portfolio faster, or wait 4 months and cash out 80% LTV, giving me DOUBLE than X. 

In your second scenario you would eliminate all capital gain and depreciation recapture with the step up in basis.there is no statutory holding period that qualifies you to convert the properties. 

However, many investors get around this with a debt service loan.

my SS deal is one of my participation deals were I provide the capital to the operator via a debt instrument then take a participation as part of the note agreement. 

Quote from @Sam Epperson: let's say I come to an agreement with the seller for them to finance some of the deal. let's also pretend the seller owns it with no debt, and we agree to 5% down, 5% rate, and 10 year balloon. how are we drafting this legal document?

I would follow-up with a letter as others have stated, but if no action was taken I would trim off any branches that over hang my property eliminating my own liability in the situation. 

If they are billed separately, the charges may fall into Fair Debt Collection Practices Act laws.

But like he said, f something goes wrong with ANY of the properties you have debt on, you might be in a pickle.