While I do not have an official W-2 currently, I do have a steady income, great credit, and have money saved as well from working since I was 13 years old.I relate to Ian Kay in his journey but also am very determined to make my goals/dreams a reality this year by July 2025.

To really give you good feedback on this, we’d need to know more about your goals and your current financial situation.

It’s awesome to see your passion for real estate investing and your clear goals for the future.

At this stage, the main thing we need is for me to get back into the workforce and get some money coming in, in order to achieve that dream.With that in mind, my immediate goal is to gain employment in the field of property management, as opposed to wasting my time working in another field that is not associated with real estate.

It’s a great way to grow faster.HELOC or Equity Tapping: If you have equity in another property, using a HELOC or cash-out refinance could help cover the down payment without affecting your DTI as much.Seller Financing or Creative Deals: Look for sellers willing to finance directly, which bypasses traditional mortgage qualification hurdles.Scaling quickly often involves combining strategies—play around with what works best for your goals.

Hey @Brandon Toron,Given your plan to turn the property into a short-term rental (STR), you have a few creative ways to push closer to that 90% cash-out goal, even if traditional lenders shy away from it:1. 

I have great lenders and property managers I can refer you to.In Cleveland, it all depends on what your goal is.

My goal would be to move in, add value, and exit in 2-3 years.

My goal is to access the equity in my home without selling it, so I can start fresh.

I would recommend you and your husband get on the same page about future investing goals.