HELOC vs. Cash out Refi vs. Private Money

[Christian Nachtrieb]

I'm having trouble understanding my next steps as an investor. I'm closing on my very first rental property at the end of the week and have been bitten by the bug, BAD. I'm already hunting for another deal but am not sure the next steps I should take. My current situation is as follows: I own the condo I live in, with roughly $50,000 of equity and have a good rate so nice low payments. The investment property I bought I got about $15k below market value and with some minimal work can be about $20k-25k above what I paid for it.

I guess I'm wondering if it's better to do a HELOC on my primary residence to use as a downpayment on investment property #2? My understanding on private money lending is also a little fuzzy... is private money lending used in addition to my own down payment with the plan being to refinance a property once it's purchased and fixed up and you switch it out to a conventional mortgage? How long do you typically hang on to a private money loan or a loan from a portfolio lender or something? Can anyone explain this part to me? Thank you!