You can also let a tenant pay the lien/encumbrance off.I can swap a lien I payoff for an interest in title.Material and workmen's liens can be financed at full face value after being purchased at a discount by a clean-up contractor (one hired to complete unfinished work). 

A home equity loan seems like a possible way to expand my portfolio, would consider buying a multifamily and renting out our current home to live in one of the units and purchase it as a primary home (assuming its 4 units or less), but being in the Santa Cruz CA area, I am afraid I'll need to look outside of CA for any deal that makes sense, and can't afford to lose my great job (can't work remotely).  

I see people purchasing new STR's here and others dumping their properties or converting into LTR's. 

Did you purchase this property all cash? 

You are interested in a certain market to use the BRRRR (Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, and Repeat) method to purchase property.To find these properties, you asked how many Realtors you would contact in that area.Honestly, most Realtors do not speak investor language and are not investors themselves.

Most commercial lenders do not require any seasoning for that entity which means that you can create an LLC and use that entity to purchase the property immediately as long as you have the proper documents.

@Tomoko HaleWith STRs its not just purchasing the property. 

We source and purchase all finish materials for our projects (lights/plumbing fixtures/etc). 

While Treasuries are often viewed as "risk-free" investments, certain real estate deals in today’s market offer a compelling alternative—especially when purchased at a deep discount.Take, for example, a 1,000+ unit apartment complex in a suburb near Michigan.

I also purchased these while residing in CA!