My wife posted our used crib and can't tell you how many useless "interested" parties kept hounding whether it was still available.

"FEMA announced that federal disaster assistance is available to the state of North Carolina to supplement recovery efforts in the areas affected by Tropical Storm Helene from Sept. 25, 2024, and continuing." 

You would need to choose between what is more important.... owning the listing or owning a STR that is dominating the market it's located in, by maximizing the tools available to manage the property.

Check out other online guides available here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/guides3.

They couldn't understand why it would be loss for me or why they wouldn't get get the full refund since those night would be available for booking. - M: explain that I'm not obligated to accept alteration requests and in this case, guest is asking me to absorb the full loss for the cancelled nights. 

That's good option to have liquid funds available if you find a good deal.   

Not sure if you have a direct question, but reading the questions between the lines on when a property is actually considered to be in service.Facts and circumstances.Generally for a rental property it is "in service" when it is "ready and available for rent" - meaning you are marketing it for rent, and a tenant could utilize a property that day.

Additionally, how do you think the changes in density regulations will affect housing availability and affordability in both cities?

Let me know your availability and let's find some time sir.

As Gino noted, if you buy a lot in cash, that can often be contributed as equity in the deal for the loan, but depending on the value and LTV ratios including your current mortgages on the existing properties, you may have very little equity available to tap into from a refi/HELOC.It has been a while, but the construction loans I have been quoted have been 80% LTV of after construction value, capped at 80% of actual cost.