The amount due to American General was $120,000, but they accepted our offer to settle in full.The 2nd mortgage is with CitiFinancial and the their loan was for $11,198.

I would vote on using your own cash and if rates settle down in the future definitely reconsider the cash out refi route for future investments.

In fact, I've only had what I would consider significant settling/foundation issues with two houses and they were both built on raised foundations.

To me it sounds like partnership LLC may still be more tax work because even after the LLC settles the books, he and I still have our own 1040's to file showing the income from the LLC.

We ultimately settled with Appfolio and have loved it.

This is why my best option is to sell by next yr and get into a duplex with a FHA loan live in it for 2-3yrs then refi to a lower rate and use that property as a rental and move into a better home where my family and I can settle down.

We're admittedly low on usable cash right now because we need to pay up closing costs for our new home in about a week, and for the first time in my life I've been actively using a credit card in order to hold onto cash.I feel the cash flow from my promotion will allow me to pay off the debt within a reasonable amount of time once our moving costs are settled (relocation is being reimbursed) so I've committed to trying to make this work.

Then when the market settled into a more natural place where it's still relatively easy with travel demand very high, but requires a little work and is no longer the easiest way to make money ever those same people are thinking to themselves "well this isn't my fault, I'm not doing anything wrong, it's just impossible in this horrible market!".

If an engineer says this was from settling and there is not further risk, I would come back with a grinding disk and take off any high points, then a crack chaser wheel to clean it up, and then put in a backer rod if needed and top with a self-leveling PL sealant.

So when I went to settle up and pay everything and everyone off - I forgot that I had two check still floating out there not cashed.