Starting out! Looking to connect and get some tips

[Arthur Hau]

Hello fellow investors!

My names Arthur, I am 28yo looking to connect and build my real estate portfolio.

Quick Summary

I purchased my home in 2017 on Rice Lake in Keene, Ontario. At the time i was working in Peterborough, all was dandy until I took a new job in 2019 which requires me to travel a lot. Luckily for me, my girlfriend lives with her parents in Mississauga and is only 15 mins away from the airport, and they have been extremely cool in letting me stay there while my home collects dust. So I thought maybe I could rent out or air bnb my home since I'm gone most of the year.

But before I do, i would like to fix it up a bit and do some general landscaping to make it homey and welcoming. Would anyone know of any contractors nearby? I would also like to get in touch with some property managers as well! I have just refinanced my home with a bank and the appraisal came in at 890K but only got approved for 320K. I currently owe 160Kish left on the mortgage and so the bank gave me a loan of 130Kish at 2% fixed but im planning to use 50K of it in etf's investments.

I am looking to use some of this money for renovations and hopefully get some cash flow out of my home. I was also curious if there was a lender that would potentially give me 65%-75% LTV on my property instead and I could use this money for a second unit (looking into a duplex or triplex).

Is this plausible in my current situation, or am i way over my head?