I've been building homes in the western suburbs of Chicago for over 20 years and wouldn't trade it for the world. 

While I won't be paying down my debt early, I will soon find myself confronted with the choice of either to refinance/releverage/trade up, or to continue paying down my debt.The answer to whether you should pay off your debt or not comes down to two personal questions you have to ask yourself:1) Can I get a better return elsewhere? 

The buyer or seller for that matter does not get to decide that somehow 3% of that is now theirs to use for a down payment, repairs or to buy trading cards and bubble gum with.Another point is you said "You do not need an agent to buy a primary residence".

Think of a speculative bet on appreciation as an asymmetric trade with a large possible upside and a known, and limited, downside.  

They have a trade desk, so of course they would like you to buy your notes through them, but they don't discourage you from buying elsewhere. 

If you’ve been looking in Portland at SFH lately, prices are incredibly high with inventory at or below 1 month.Multifamily is trading at about 175-250k per door on the 1-4 units.

They are trading a longer commute for lower housing costs.

Right now this is not about a deal or a fully built-out execution plan- it is about looking at the resources around you. 1) This is BiggerPockets. 

What are some effective ways of executing that?

@Juan Vasquez it sounds like you are trading one home in a great location for two homes in an ok location.