But chances of that happening are slim, so I assume that the studio is cheaper (in price) than the alternative. 

I guess I'm not super interested in refinancing into a higher mortgage with the cash flow slim on this condo already, but it's in a great building in a great location that I think will continue to perform well for years. 

Turbo skip for skip tracing your data- 15 cents a recordPULL NON OWNER OCCUPIED PROPERTIES AND YOU CAN ADD OTHER FILTERS TO SLIM DOWN YOUR DATA

The odds of you closing before January are slim to none in this situation anyway so that will take care of your timeline issue. 

Turbo skip for skip tracing your data- 15 cents a recordPULL NON OWNER OCCUPIED PROPERTIES AND YOU CAN ADD OTHER FILTERS TO SLIM DOWN YOUR DATA.If you have any other questions feel free to reach out, happy to help. 

Most families that can afford nearly 4k a month prefer to own, so rental prospects slim way down.I'd simply be patient, knowing I have likely the nicest rental property available in your market.Gary

Most title companies are not licensed nationwide so the chances that you find someone you like in CA that can operate in different states is slim.

HMLenders like to be in first lien, chances of getting HML for cosmetic lift are slim.

Regarding the HELOC, it does seem like slim pickings on number of banks/credit unions who do this and their restrictions.

The real estate market is so hot right now that if something was sitting on the market for 60 days and has not moved, chances of wholesaling it are slim to none.