Alternatively you can 'condo' the two family into independent units so valuation is higher for the cash out refi as long as you're OK not having a ton of cash flow but more cash in your pocket. 

If you are going to brrr a better alternative is hire a 3rd party home inspector prior to bringing in a pm or paying your gc his final payment and make sure its a good amount for the gc. 

Alternatively, if you're going to have a lot of properties that you need to obtain ownership information for, you might want to consider utilizing a paid service like Property Radar or Property Shark.

Over half (56%) reduced spending so they could service mortgage payments.Since mid-March, or about the time when the lockdowns began, nearly half (47%) of homeowners have explored alternative ways of making money.

Your alternative is to learn the work of fixing decrepit 100-year-old properties yourself, and even then you'll find difficulty hiring reliable helpers to help you with larger jobs.BTW, this is not an advertisement.

They wouldn’t be the first scam tag team in this arena .That said here is an agency to file a complaint with Consumer Financial Protection Bureau https://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint/they are oversight for any licensed lender.If your “ lender “ was not licensed CFPB would advise you of alternative routes to take.

the way to get around that rule is to find an alternative lender and continue to shop around, otherwise unfortunately the 6 month rule applies. 

As Bob mentioned Odoban or an ozone machine are other alternatives if it is a couple isolated areas. 

I'll be going to it as a good alternative to a few in person conferences I had in mind for this year. 

Someone else may have another alternative to that, though.