Need some advice on Refi.

[Sahil Tadwalkar]

Hi All, 

I'm a new investor with one property in the Bay Area that my wife and I purchased last year. It's a townhome that we bought to move into, but due to some last minute changes we decided to live with family and rent it out (our mortgage company is aware of this). We have an owner occupied rate of 6.25% on a 5/5 arm. Right now, the property is cashflow neutral, but only because we have significant equity tied up in it (~35% down). I'm trying to figure out ways to pull some cash out, so I can make more long term investments and keep some liquidity on hand, while still keeping my expenses low. 

We didn't do any major renovations since buying and renting it out, but Redfin tells us that we gained ~$60k of equity. I'd guess the real number is closer to $30k, since we bought it slightly under market and did some minor work like changed all the appliances. 

Has anyone been in a similar situation or used some creative ways to unlock the trapped equity? I'm thinking that I need to ride out some more equity growth to take advantage of a refi but any thoughts or ideas are much appreciated! I've also considered a HELOC but have shied away from it since I want to make longer term investments.

Thank you!