We are in our early 40’s and would like to get rid of a mortgage sooner than later, and would also like to be able to either cut down hours at work, or allow my husband to retire early, as realistically it’s going to be very hard for him to physically work until he’s 70 when our current mortgage is paid off.

C1 - New PropertyC2 - No deferred maintenance, little or no physical depreciation & recent updatesC3 - Well Maintained, with normal wear and tear and, perhaps, some updatesC4 - Minor deferred maintenance requiring only minimal repairsC5 - In need of significant repairsC6 - Substantial damages or significant need of major repairsAs you can see the differences between the condition of a property between a C1 and C4 is minimal between each Rating, but between C4 and C5 there is a HUGE difference.

On the other hand, in some ways it is more difficult:  managing from a distance (if you choose to do so), lack of ability to physically check properties, location uncertainty (deployments, training Xs, schools). 

We manage properties in neighboring counties but only have a physical office in one of them.

Let's say there are kids involved and the wife will keep physical custody of them.

Physically, work out, mentally-- focus on your connections with your spouse, friends, family,  human connections and relationships are a crucial part of sanity IMO.  

Where do you physically put the MH when rehabbing it? 

If something goes wrong, your physical proximity can matter a lot.

@Dov KlitnickNot really.. my first purchase was out of country and I didn't physically look at the properties until 90 days later.. didn't really have to see it..

If you can no longer afford to live somewhere, you need to move, not drag the landlord through court until the sheriff physically removes you from the unit.Beyond that, a major deterrent for evictions is the "unknown".