Being out of state, I would suggest vetting your "team", meaning find an investor realtor, lender/s (hard $ / long term), property manager, contractors, etc.

Loan officers with 25 years of experience typically are more experienced, and have less time per file, because they have an abundance of files.Loan officers with 25 months of experience typically are less experienced, but have more time to devote to you.I can't write my own loans, so when I'm getting a loan I prefer working with less busy people when I'm doing my own real estate investment, they're more responsive and dedicated it feels like.

We are currently at a low affordability rate, which is typically a leading indicator of slowdown and price trend change.

Lancaster city limits short term rentals to only certain zones of the city so definitely look at the city website for that information.

Unlike refinancing, which involves taking out a new loan, recasting keeps your existing loan terms—including your interest rate and loan duration—intact.

Also, I wanted to convey that the type of investor I describe should on;y accept a quality tenant well above what’s typically considered acceptable in the industry.  

I would try not to tie up any of the principal in down payments.Personally, I had a family member do this same thing, but they used an investment portfolio as the collateral instead of real estate.If you play your cards right, this might be the only short-term money you ever need.Please let us know what you end up doing.

I submitted an application etc but I am going to finish the rehab to get better terms before resubmitting.The back story is that I am about 90% done rehabbing a home for a rental. 

You won't be able to use conventional financing and must use a non-recourse loan which typically require 40% down.

The partials we purchase are usually on shorter term notes i.e. 120-240 month terms and investor loans to other investors that typically put 15-25% down.