Hard money lender to buy property?

[Eric Siu]

So I've seen a lot of people suggest using a hard money lender to purchase a property as a way to not use his/her own money in the deal. This makes sense for a fix and flip property, but how does it work out for a buy and hold rental? I can't seem to think of a way to pay off the lender in a short term just using the rental income off the property. Cash out refi? Or in another situation, getting a conventional loan using a hard money lender to pay the down payment. Help??