My builder friend can build a fairly generic townhome for about $250k/door.  

I usually work with my local credit union where I have developed a relationship over the years.

Real estate investors do not get lines of credit from a bank.

Talk to all of the local credit unions.

I went to school in Michigan and worked in GR for several years, so I'm fairly familiar with the areas, but not as an investor.

You've probably heard of big Landlords losing property, but only because they were flagrantly violating Fair Housing, running a slum, or otherwise egregiously violating the law.

Yeah you’re fairly safe as a landlord.  

Demand for February/March move-ins should see a notable uptick sometime in January, but you'll for sure see your strongest rental demand in late spring/summer.Your most recent post mentioned that you were going to look for someone for a 6-month lease - I think this is a great way to approach it to minimize vacancy loss while biding your time until we get into the higher demand summer months.Getting creative with your lease term and credits/concessions could also be a good way to solve a few potential problems in one shot. 

You have a fair bit of floodplain along Cane Creek at the bottom of your parcel that is unlikely to ever yield any development value. 

As for short-term financing, they are fairly easy to work with but the biggest hurdle is their internal credit model.