. #1 priority will be the jobs at hand & learning will be slow.

So, I enrolled back in school toward a second master’s degree in order to take a hardship withdrawal on my 401k since I’d already taken loans out that totalled 50% of what was in there.

In a slow market the landlord might have the right to collect months of rent but the cost of successfully suing and collecting usually is not worth the effort.Other than some value in psychologically tying some limited number of tenants to the rental unit, what, if anything, is the value of a multi-year lease? 

Land is slow on posting their data.

That has turned out to be a slow-burn strategy that feels overly conservative.I have basically zero education/training, so now I'm here, trying to figure out some better methods.

Although this past year I’ve slowed down to educate myself in real estate.

I am in the process to make deals, but I know i still have a long way to know, so i want to go slow so I become successful.

I took an early withdrawal and paid the penalties.

With the Lower Mainland red-hot housing market showing obvious signs of slowing down, there are opportunities to invest in our own backyard, from the Fraser Valley to Lake Country. 

While two reps from the same firm will quote you the same rate, their ability to execute the loan can be night and day different.In regards to pros and cons ... think of the lending world as falling into 3 primary buckets: 1) traditional banks and credit unions (ie, Wells, BofA, Chase, etc), 2) mortgage banks (ie, Caliber, Quicken, Fairway, etc), and 3) mortgage brokers.Traditional Banks: (they do loans and hold deposits)Pros: because they tend to do such a large volume of loans, they are able to offer low rates ... they have the ability to do portfolio loansCons: very slow turn times - if you need to close quickly, they're generally unable to perform ... they tend to use national appraisal management companies and appraisal issues are common in competitive markets.Mortgage Banks: (they only do loans - no deposits)Pros: have the ability to close loans much faster - some of the local mortgage banks that we work with on purchases will routinely close loans in less than 14 days ... they often setup their own appraisal management companies and are able to improve the appraisal quality by ensuring the use of local appraisers.Cons: while they should be very competitive with their rates, they're not going to be the absolute lowest ... portfolio loans are generally not an option - they need to sell their loans right away so they can get that money back to lend it out again.Mortgage Brokers:Pros: they will have access to a bunch of different lenders and loan products, so they can submit your info to whichever one is offering the best terms at that moment.Cons: they have no control/influence over the underwriters or the timeframes ... they're generally forced to use national appraisal management companies, so appraisal issues are more commonHope this is helpful and good luck with the refi!