I've been all over the place on my preferred stock opinion. I used to keep my positions held to a 200 share limit ~$5,000, but no longer.
After almost 10 years of traveling, cooking, growing, wine making, and collecting pension and rent checks, we've sold the rentals after 24 years of that side gig. I was never big on bond funds, or individual bonds but the past few years gave me a better education and perspective. While I still do not have many bonds as part of my fixed income portfolio. I use Preferred Stock as mini -bonds. For example, Huntington Bank Preferred P 4.50% (HBANP at Fido) is a $25 par issue that currently sells at $18.81. It still pays the original $1.125 annual dividend, which is 6.036% on the $18.81, but I bought a crap load at $17.75, which is 6.63%. I can sit and hold that position for a while. I'm good if it gets called, and I have many other positions just like it. No, it's not Apple or Boeing but I don't need it to be either, just Huntington Bank P.
