Using a $200-250K HELOC to Scale—Looking for Insights from Experienced Investors

[Vincent Pflieger]

Hey everyone,

I'll keep this short and would love to hear from investors who have successfully leveraged a HELOC to scale their real estate portfolio for both short-term cash flow and long-term wealth building.

I’m about to unlock $200-250K in HELOC from my primary residence (a condo in NYC), and I know there’s a powerful strategy I can implement.

My current plan:

✅ Acquire a 10-15 unit multifamily in a mid-sized market (AL, TN, OH, etc.), targeting a $700-800K deal with value-add potential.

✅ Use 20% from my HELOC for the down payment and finance the rest with hard money.

✅ Force appreciation over 6 months, then refinance into a DSCR loan to pay off the HELOC.

✅ Rinse and repeat!

Has anyone executed a similar strategy?

What challenges did you face, and what lessons did you learn?

Would love to hear about pitfalls, lender restrictions, and any alternative approaches you’d recommend.

Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences!

[Travis Timmons]

It's a 100% financed value add deal that has ZERO margin for error. That's the real challenge with your strategy. Everything has to work. What happens if you go over your rehab budget and run out of cash? You're stuck and have leveraged your primary residence against it.

I'd rather you have healthy cash reserves and use the HELOC to buy a single family home or small multifamily that does not qualify for conventional financing and BRRRR or flip it.