IMO, your best bet to target would be in the $750 range.

If you can find a duplex, buy one side and rent the other, or a triplex, that's probably your best short-term bet.

I always have scheduling issues with HD and price-wise I bet they can be beat.

If you increase your down payment I bet your rate would go to 5.00 or 5.125%, just a guess.Let us know how it goes, hope that helps.

Be diplomatic, opening up with you want to collaborate with fellow landlords and keeping an eye on each others' property would be mutually beneficial.You can bet if a fellow landlord contacted me about my tenant's dogs I would certainly follow up.

Will a portfolio lender be the best bet for cash out?

Your best bet, if you desire a real person out in front of you that you can shake hands with and pose questions to, would be to attend a meeting at any of your local real estate investment associations (or REIAs).

Cheers to that Jen.Since you have extra money, in my opinion, real estate is probably the safest and best bet to go.

One caveat - don't expect the same rents as the luxury locations, but I bet you can make a nice income from it. 

A few things to realize about being a commercial agent in this type of market:Finding good deals is really hardcommercial brokers font like to share their commissions Loopnet has NO good dealsAs mentioned above, if you want to get into the commercial brokers business, your best bet would be to join one of the big firms and grind for 2-3 until you build your client base and become an expert in the niche you work in, maybe even get a CCIM certified.