|The gain that you have is ikely passive.

Exploring wholesaling and land investing is a great way to break into the industry, and your focus on value-adding strategies and modular housing shows you’re thinking creatively about how to address market needs.Your entrepreneurial background in auto detailing will definitely serve you well in real estate, especially with your attention to detail and perseverance.

When I sold my properties, the price did not increase much (though there was still a slight profit, couple with the rental I had over the years and currency gain (bought when USD was low and sold when USD was high).

If your primary has a net $1M appreciation you’ll only pay $100k cap gains tax - that’s a lower alternative than what you propose.

I'm in this strange position of being out of state and unfortunatley not having the time to visit or gain personal expertise.

And when people get tunnel vision for lowest $ down, they tend to not give attention to the revenue generation of it, the operations, and that's a VERY dangerous combination of high leverage and not so-good revenue. 

If you've enjoyed a lot of appreciation in the value of your primary home, you may want to start a timer to sell before losing the "lived in the house for 2 of the last 5 years" capital gains exemption (limited; not infinite, but big).  

If so invest locally, gain experience and knowledge, scale up and go from there. 

Although a cash offer may help you win the property or gain concessions in the short-term, there are long-term benefits to using debt. 

With plan to liquidate around yr 5-7, 1031 those gains to pyramid the equity growth.