@Arthur Briscoe That sounds worse than here in SC. I

@Jill F. I

I’m from Greenville, SC. I

I am in the same boat--wanting to expedite my cashflow and FI journey.

Due to employment reasons, I am relocating from Charlotte NC to Columbia Sc. I

@Chip Marchandin order of most real estate-y to FI to general business:Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat by David Greene (RE)Real Estate Investing Gone Bad by Phil Pustejovsky (RE)Investing in Real Estate by Gary Eldred (RE)Quit Like a Millionaire by Kristy Shen (FI)Playing with FIRE by Scott Rieckens (FI)I Will Teach You to be Rich by Ramit Sethi (FI)The One Thing by Gary KellerAm I Being Too Subtle by Sam ZellShoe Dog by Phil KnightThe Big Short by Michael Lewis

Whereas a straight cash-out re-fi will automatically increase your payments and thereby kill your cash flow immediately.

That said, unless you're sitting on loads of cash or you're happy living on a shoestring budget for the next 10+ years, I have two recommendations on how to get to FI in 5-10 years:1) Dive in.

Hope this helps and if you have any questions about financing options in MD, NC or SC I will be happy to help (licensed in all 3 states). 

@Karen F. I