We all have our own struggles, I'll admit I'm personally set back because of some very unexpected vet Bill's and none of us had really anticipated this slowdown.

Do you have enough reserves for the unexpected?

I am brand new to all of this, so take it for what it’s worth, but a basic piece of advice I would tell anyone is to make sure you have enough reserves for unexpected costs and economic down turns. 

My rehabs are usually mostly cosmetic so far, but sometimes you pull something up and discover some unexpected problems

There is always going to be some unexpected obstacle between plan and execution so keep that in mind when you start out.

Similarly, we learned that just because a contractor has a higher price and a big business does not mean they will be professional or reliable in unexpected situations such as our local permitting process and sending in the proper forms to pass inspections.Only higher contractors that are references from trusted sources.

Just be prepared for the unexpected.

You’ll need money to pay for lawyer fees, deposits, repairs and have funds for unexpected repairs/maintenance as well as unexpected none payment of rent.

So backing out some of your down payment and leveraging the HML to 30% will leave enough funds for the project and the unexpected expense.2) Now you analyze the rental's potential income and expenses (post refinance). 

You’ll need money to pay for lawyer fees, deposits, repairs and have funds for unexpected repairs/maintenance as well as unexpected none payment of rent.