HELOC VS pay cash for buy and hold.

[Bryan Fean]

Would it make more sense to use a HELOC or pay cash for a buy and hold? Assuming you had enough cash in the bank and enough equity in your home to do either. The only goal is the best long term financial situation. Would keep the rental for at least 10 years. And may buy another property or two, but not looking to build an empire or quit my day job.

If you used a HELOC you would not need to use cash on hand. But if I had cash sitting in my bank account getting 2%, I would aggressively pay down the debt anyway. That is part of the equation. I want to get a better return on my money than the bank.

If I paid cash, it would deplete my savings, but I could always rap a mortgage on it or maybe get a HELOC on it if I needed the money. Maybe BRRRR...

I guess either way you are not getting good cash on cash return because you are not using leverage. But as I said I want to get this money working more. Although would you consider HELOC money "cash "?

Am I missing something, or is it a push?