So first off it isn't a an AirBNB but a Short Term Rental.

I plan to occupy one of the basement rooms while short term renting the upstairs on AirBNB / Vrbo for additional revenue.

What would be my best path going forward in the short term to obtain funding?

For example, they lost a fairly major battle when they tried to argue that only licensed professional can manage short term rental properties. 

If you're in one of the Primo in-town neighborhoods your rent floor should be higher.Compared to short term rental - your gross rents will be lower, but that comes with lower headache. 

A lot can happen in 12-years and we are currently in an inflationary environment where the rates don't seem to be going down with the Fed lowering short term interest rates.  

Long story short, I spent about 3 months figuring out how to make half-decent drawings and refining and adjusting them to code.We started work on the basement at the end of May with Minh and by the middle of September the basement was transformed into a luxurious 2/1.That still left a lot of landscaping work, but my wife and I tackled that over the next 3-4 weeks in addition to the furnishing.

@Cam Warren Will send you a message shortly! 

There is short-term savings in replacing my mortgage with my credit line.

I’m especially interested in spots with strong short-term rental (STR) demand, where the laws are favorable to investors.I have around $250,000 USD to put down as a deposit, and I plan to finance the rest through a mortgage.