If I increase the rent by $200 it would increase to about $5,200 a month.

Things can fall apart for a variety of reasons and you don't want to confuse the tenants if that were to happen.I like the idea of giving the tenants a month or two to digest the bad news of a rent increase, however this often gives the M2M tenants a reason to go find a new place.

Sure, my monthly cash flow will appear to increase by $220/mo, which could increase my purchasing power (a strong positive), but I'm not sure if it's a wise investment. 

The VA loan limit for 2018 was increased to $453,100 for most parts of the country.

How much did your homeowners insurance increase when you added short term rental to your policy?

Cost of rehab vs. level of rent increase and payback period.2) Rent raises, how much and when to raise rents on both existing tenants and vacant units.3) What amenities to add, particularly how to handle laundry facilities.

Also, since it looks like you are out of state, I would also consider the management headaches if you choose an area where clientele may be more difficult to manage.

If so, I still am not sure whether it makes sense considering that I would need to do the Refi at an interest rate over 5% vs. the 3.875 I have currently (i.e. does potential tax benefit make up for the increase in rate). 

As for private lenders, getting 0% down for 5 years is incredibly difficult. 

.- I let them know that in PA an eviction stays on their credit report for up to 7 years and that they will likely have a difficult time finding another place to live with an eviction on their credit report.