How to effectively use a HELOC to increase my rental portfolio?

[Casey Taylor]

Novice question here! This is my first time posting to the forum and I’m sure I sound like a rookie, but here it goes anyway.

I have been creeping around on the forums for a while now trying to learn everything I can. I currently own one rental property in AZ that I house hacked. I have great cash flow on it and the house has close to doubled in value since I purchased it in 2015, leaving me with quite a bit of equity that I plan to use to increase my portfolio with OOS multi families. I'm seeking some advice on how to best use my equity with a HELOC? I'm still a little fuzzy on the best strategy for paying the loan back quickly after purchasing other properties. I'd also love to hear some of your recommendations for newer investor markets where I could begin to scale my portfolio. I currently live in Las Vegas where it's a little too high to grow at the pace I'd like over the next few years.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.