I do own two triplexes in Scranton, and I will say the one issue is that you are going to be taking care of the utilities normally if they are not on separate meters, which could take a good amount of money away from your overall cash flow. 

Here are the key numbers:Potential purchase price: Mid-$400k rangeAppraised value: Estimated at ~$500kRehabbed comparable properties (comps): ~$580-600kMonthly PITI (with 5% down, including mortgage insurance): ~$3400First-year PITI (with 2-1 buydown): ~$2900Monthly income (after taxes): ~4-5kLiving expenses (utilities, groceries, etc.): ~$1600Savings available: ~15-20% of the purchase priceCash to close: ~$34kRehab estimate: ~$34kRemaining reserves: ~$20-25kTo fully fund the rehab, I’d need to come up with an additional ~$15k in the short term, which I anticipate paying back quickly once the rental portion is generating income.

(Like RC Wiley) The money losing warranties offered by utility companies.

This really puts things in perspective and helps me what I would need to do if I consider utilizing this strategy.

You'll want to incorporate interest costs on the HELOC while you're using it, but that will add to your holding costs in addition to utilities, closing costs, etc..

When making offers I want to utilize the standard 70%-ARV-Profit formula.

However, most property management companies utilize every available platform to maximize exposure and lease properties as quickly as possible.

I'll be moving from California and only making a 50k  salary, but this job will cover housing and utilities.

Quote from @Ben Fernandez: Gotcha...I like your goals utilizing the lease option.

Easiest thing to do is to utilize your channel manager to create one (most have this feature) or maybe consider houfy.com or craftedstays.co, they are specific for creating direct websites.