We recently relocated to Phoenix last summer and I'm starting to look for recommendations for local credit unions here in Phoenix which are trustworthy, low rates, personal touch, easy/simple to work with, etc. 

And the laws and regulations here are very different, not very strict like the states.Prices are high and rents are low over here.

Detroit is very much a block-by-block city, so having local knowledge is absolutely critical.

I will say that during that time, the HELOC interest rates were very low.  

Maybe I'm no longer a low risk bond investor, maybe I'm parking my money in $VOO instead, CRE REITs, or perhaps higher risk higher return bonds. 

This vary heavily town to town. 20% down is great if buying strictly as investment but if you have a way of owner occupying I would explore that route and apply the 20% down to increasing value of property and instead using low money down loan. 

We have an extremely competitive market, huge demand and low inventory.

We can pay what we need to, but putting 1/3 the sale cost of the house into a foundation repair doesn’t seem like a good option unless there’s absolutely no alternative.  

Quote from @Jaycee Greene: Assuming you pay asking price, I'd estimate the down payment for something like that using a hard money loan (HML) would be around 40% of the purchase price and your monthly payment would be $2,600 with an interest rate in the low 7% range (probably need a 700+ credit score to get that).

However, be cautious about focusing solely on low prices.