I live one town over...I was looking there pretty often found some great deals but wasn’t ready to pull the trigger.

Refi is preferable if the money being accessed is for longterm purposes (ie buy/hold) and you plan to purchase another investment soon whereas a Heloc is preferable for short-term use (flip, rehab, etc.) and/or you want the ability to pull the trigger in the perhaps distant future if/when a deal presents itself.

@Brian Ellis - still new to the site my bad, I figured a comment on your post (or a post you commented on) would trigger notifications to pop up, good to know to tag people instead.

Let me know if you decide to pull the trigger on us, maybe we can help each other. 

Have the financing in place so you can pull the trigger quick.

@Chris Jurgens did you pull the trigger, how was the experience.i am also looking into buying my first duplex and any tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciatedthanks

So, I guess my point is, don't try to find a magic bullet out there to pull the trigger on an STR investment. 

I'm ready to pull the trigger and have analyzed a lot of properties.

SOOOOO Excited I finally pulled the trigger!

I've been following topics, watching videos, and too nervous to pull the trigger on trying to find and execute my first deal.