Hey Matt,Yes, taxes are the bane of the REI existence in SC.

As you getting further into your investor career having a pre-existing relationship with a banker will help!

My main goal is to start my real estate journey on the right foot and set myself up for success.Other questions:Is the Phoenix market too saturated due to the huge influx of people moving there? 

Just be sure to factor in the 1% PMI in your numbers, as this exists for the lifetime of the FHA loanHappy investing!

.- Given the very low rate I am simply considering paying off existing higher-rate mortgages on my rental properties, essentially "refinancing" at a lower rate. 

Median Price: $525,000 +7.14% Yoy - 7ish % isn't unusual, I have multiple ~7% moves since 2016.Sales: 5,344, -10.06% - normal number for September, 2020 was unusually high due to delayed purchases from Covid thus the yoy lossYTD sales: 41,238, +8.36% - highest Sept read I have, houses are selling.Inventory: 5,875, +6.16% - still too low compared to pre-Covid, see stacked chart.New Listings: 6,366, -10.61% - still too low compared to pre-Covid, see stacked chart.YTD New listings: 51,949, -2.47% - prior to Covid we were running 60k+ houses.Months Supply: 1.2, -14.29% - persistently low indicating an unrelenting sellers market, see the Existing homes as a % of households chart, continues to shrink.Cumulative days on Market: 26, -44% - persistently low indicating an unrelenting sellers market

The amount of the loss is generally the lesser of the adjusted basis in the property or the decrease in the FMV due to the casualty.Four important differences exist between business and personal casualty losses:1.

I've also considered doing a "test run" with an SFR in the Cleveland area and if that does not work, simply converting the unit to long-term and adding it to my existing portfolio.  

Further, the existence of a diving board or slide further reduces that number.  

Your talking about purchasing all new baseboard units, having them installed, all new electrical wiring run and either a central thermostat or room based thermostats.Regarding your existing furnace, did you only get a parts replacement quote from the one contractor?