I am confident that if you find a good coach and take action, you will speed up your success. 

But until then I'm trying to catch up to speed with books, pod cast and mentoring sessions to make sure that I have enough of an understanding to be successful in this venture.  

Speed of repair and availability of parts is no different - if you were living there, and you didn't know how to fix it, you'd be spending the same $250 and waiting the same amount of time for the part, and it's nothing more than a minor inconvenience.

@Kyle WegenerSince your plan is to acquire a porfolio of properties, don't speed up your payments. 

Of course, if this is a larger scale project, the cost of the lack of speed is higher.

Higher end furnace will have a variable speed motor which you can run all day at a low speed with constant circulating air. 

But in terms of flexibility and speed, a HELOC will generally give you more flex than a cash-out refinance. 

Then sign some version of a personal receipt from me to my neighbors as recognition of their participation in the transaction? 

Be prepared for a high-speed buying process in Houston, and many other urban areas thanks to steep market competition.

My wife and I would like to take a course but would like to take it online and at our own speed.