This balanced approach meets your financial goals, diversifies risk, and aligns with your preference for conservative real estate investments.This post does not create a CPA-Client relationship.

It seems that you prefer a currency that only goes down, steadily, but surely.  

This is the primary reason I prefer VRBO over Airbnb.

The wife and kids would prefer to stay. :)   I'll likely do the HELOC and not worry about the extra taxes on gains over $500k when I finally do sell someday. 

I prefered two or three more years that I can work and save money to buy a house ( $300k) and car (30k) with cash.

I have dozens of clients doing this in New Jersey most of which come from no construction background, they simply use preferred vendors we have in place (not GC's) which lowers renovations cost because there is no middle man. 

Since you will have it on the market sooner vacant I think that would be my preference going into winter, if it were closer to summer I would put tenants in.  

Efficient Renovations: Focused on high-impact upgrades like modernizing the kitchen and bathrooms, improving curb appeal, and installing energy-efficient features, which are highly desirable in this competitive market.Optimizing Layout: Evaluated the property's layout to ensure it met modern buyer preferences, such as creating open-concept spaces.

Society likes to gaslight when that happens, I prefer to fight such fire with fire and in occasion wind.

A 14-50r plug was always the preferred method, especially before the world woke  up and switched to the Tesla charging standard.