Getting a HELOC without a full appraisal can be tricky, but there are a few ways it might be possible, especially if you’ve added significant value to your property.Showing Recent Home Improvements : Providing documentation of recent home improvements and their costs might convince a lender to waive the full appraisal.High Equity : If you have a significant amount of equity in your home, lenders might be more flexible with appraisal requirements.Streamlined HELOC Programs : Some lenders offer streamlined or fast-track HELOC programs that don't require a full appraisal.

We have seen steady appreciation around 7-8% over the last 10 years (you can look that up on YouTube) and are on track to another 8% year so far.

Maybe you ought to look into buying positions in investments that were entered at yesterday‘s interest rates and with an existing track record before looking at the new opportunities.

Slowly I was able to put myself on a better financial track to buy. 

Our priorities in terms of market is there needs to be- anticipated economic growth (lots of tech companies are moving into Columbus),- prices need to allow us to buy in all cash (400k or less, ideally up to 300k),- we want the area to be safe (when looking into places like Dayton, OH or Memphis, TN for instance it looks like all our boxes are checked on paper, numbers wise but we realized quickly there are a lot of unsafe areas and we could have the potential for problem tenants)- yearly expenses to be relatively low (i.e. we are avoiding NYC and the tri state area, California, etc. for having extremely high taxes).Is our initial analysis on the right track for Columbus?

TIA.I track rates by following:https://www.walkerdunlop.com/funding-your-vision/financing-o...These are Freddie Mac rates which will be better than what you can get elsewhere, but it will give you an idea of how much rates have moved recently. 

The only thing I can do to help justify it is that now with income in the highest tax bracket, I am saving 37% on any depreciation I can get.Will someone either wake me up to my new found delusions or encourage me that I am still on the right track.

Lots of virtues with good infrastructure, govt. and tourism industry, not on the main hurricane track, still laid back and not a huge scene.

@Matthew Welk Happy to make an intro to the answering service team at CS Outsource that does our late-night support.They help with 24/7 emergency support, overnight coverage, troubleshooting issues, dispatching approved vendors & local staff, tracking and managing maintenance work orders, and other back-office tasks.

You can create custom maps to mark areas of interest, track properties you're considering, and note key amenities like schools, shopping centers, and public transport.