Hope it sells quick .

I am trying to put some of the equity in the investment property to work without having to sell the property to get access to the equity, however because it is a rental I have been unable to find a bank that will lend.

The fact that they so quickly were willing to give you $8,000 in repair credit tells me theyre scared youll run.

I did a quick search and and portfolio loan I thought was when a mortgage company didn't sell it off but held it in their portfolio but rates are higher 

If you have the debt bandwidth, you could potentially take on additional loans and use the equity from the sale as down payments, giving you a tidy little portfolio pretty quickly.

With a project such as this, you may want to move quickly but strategically.

In return, you strive to keep the property well maintained and address concerns quickly.

One of my next steps is to run a teaser Craigslist ads to determine how quickly and how much response you get.  

Also, when you ask questions, like trying to get some quotes, they'll respond quickly.

That is, negotiate the best deal you can, then put them under contract with the right of entry, right to market, and a contingency such as contingent upon successful 3rd party assignment, then take each property to public auction and flip them for quick lump sum profits.