What if I told you that you could purchase this property at 20-30% of the initial price, would you take that deal? 

Or buy something that needs some love and some hard money lenders will fund up to 90-100% of the purchase and rehab.

That someone is going to deliver to you, on a silver platter, a property purchase you can simply say "yeah, sure, I'll take that" where you do some paint, carpet, little cleaning and tidying and turn around and clear a $100k? 

The substitute of collateral was more of a scenario where you sold for $155K, and instead of paying off the $88K loan in your scenario, those funds stayed at the title company and were used on a cash purchase happening nearby in date. 

Purchase price: $178,000 Cash invested: $10,000 primary home own use has an Airbnb/ short term rental 5 months out the year/sometime this year will try BRRRR

In Berlin, rental arbitrage has been very profitable, with average annual margins of 25-40% after all costs but before taxes, so shifting to a market where arbitrage is barely breaking even is definitely a reality check.Given your experience, would you say the best way to enter the market now is through purchasing properties with financing?

Now days you don't buy a deal you make the deal either with how you operate the property, how you finance the property, or how you purchase the property.

I think we all get fatigued from time to time, and I think it's worse when things are "slow" because of economics or demographics or whatever.

@Preet Oberoi Purchasing a short-term rental (STR) or tiny home to offset W-2 income with depreciation can be effective if structured correctly.

You don't need to actually rent to purchase a renters policy.