Harm in applying for a HELOC?

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Hi BP,

I'm a long-time 'browser' of the site who finally decided to take the plunge into Pro membership to fully utilize all this community offers! Looking forward to learning and networking with all you real estate rockstars. 

Currently my goal is to move out of my condo, keep it as a rental, and house hack a multi-unit. My questions pertain to setting myself up financially for the next step...

1. Is there any harm in opening up a HELOC just to have it ready, even if I can only get a ~$15,000 line?

2. Is there any harm in getting pre-qualified for another mortgage now? Is it possible to do it without a hard credit pull? (I know they'll do a hard pull to qualify me for #1) 

3. Assuming I have enough cash in the bank right now for a down payment on the next property, how would you approach my situation? 

Thank you all in advance!

-Dan