Kind of piggybacking off this same notion but I have a permitted shed in the back of my duplex that would make a great studio apt. 

It's stopping me from scaling to a much larger portfolio leveraged versus a smaller paid off portfolio.  

Hi David, you need a discounted propety, have you tried hyper focusing on off-market properties in your desired area.  

Since she was a first time homebuyer we were able to save her 1% off her interest rate!

All of these assets are paid off.

Everything was progressing smoothly until I met the appraiser to provide access to the property.Right away, I sensed something was off.

Just remember though unless you have deep pockets you need to at a bare minimum stay cash flow neutral until you get the property running and your debt paid off.  

Paid off real estate cash flows extremely well.

If you’re not in a rush to tap your equity, holding off until rates come down could save you money in the long run.

If they are, I would pay them off first.I would invest in a different market(likely bigger market) where you can find reliable contractors or find a PM that will be able to manage the properties.