If borrowing against stocks is an option, do they have to be stocks held within the US and/or do Canadian stock investments count as well?

Looking for best options.

What’s my best option to argue there.

You have an exciting opportunity at your fingertips, some cash purchases could make sense in higher appreciation markets if you were looking for other options or to diversify.

Since you're not looking to make it a full-time career, you might consider passive investment options such as investing in real estate syndications - this GP/LP structure as a limited partner, allowing the GP to earn you a return allows you to invest in real estate without the day-to-day responsibilities.

I am on the lending side of things, so if you'd ever like to chat shop and options out there, let me know. 

I am a bit surprised that there are not more options? 

My lender is suggesting me to buy property under my name and then transfer it to LLC later as there are not many financing options available for LLC.

@Kamal Sukhija, The single member LLC option as been mentioned a couple of times. 

However, SEP IRA contributions require earned income from active participation in a business or trade.Our goal with posts like these are to increase awareness of all the options that may be available to them, like this one.