Typically this means they will take longer to close, may not have all the information for the companies they work with, and most hard money brokers get their money by taking an existing product and adding extra points to pay their fee.What is your investor success rate?

Quote from @Joshua Patterson: Thank you @Jaycee Greene.

Private money refers to individuals who offer a similar product but lend to friends, family and other investors they know. 

It's funny you mention finding a junior broker or one that is more "green" because the one team that I do have looking for commercial deals for me actually delegated all of the "grunt work" like door knocking to one of the newest brokers in their office.

Our rates are going up because they are closing coal fired power plants and going for more green energy , which costs more . much more .

I guess I could do some work-arounds -- maybe reserve one unit in the first purchase for use as an AirBnb, and reserve my own time in it when needed - instead of claiming it as a primary.Are either of you (or anyone) familiar with a finance product/loan that will allow me to purchase under $150,000 (w/ strong credit) and do much of my own work and live-in a portion as a primary residence?  

I'm still in the process of finding an alternative solution but I thought I'd leave this here as a warning for others looking to make a decision.For reference, I'll just post their email response to me here:As we review your inquiry, we would like to remind you of the following key points from our Terms of Use:In no instance shall ShinePay be liable for any of the following:"Lost revenue from service interruptions.Lost revenue stemming from delays, malfunctions of any product.unauthorized gains access to your account or due to shared passwords or if your password is hacked.Destruction to properly, places, or personal injury resulting from the installation, misinstalling, or misuse of any product.Lost revenue from entering the wrong account number for ACH or other bank transfer or money transfers or due to any delay in receiving funds.Damage to your structure, machines or car resulting from use or installation of our products.Any funds collected that are paid to a person that does not own the property.Any harm from defeating the lock and technology that controls the lock to a device.Failure to properly service any product or machine."

To stand out in the STR space especially you need to be very well accredited and offer and great and unique product.

.: Quote from @Audrey Sommer: A couple weeks ago, I was talking to a texan resident that came up to Washington State to help the company I work at, train our team for a new product launch.

With your experience and possible skillset, perhaps finding a company to sponsor you for a green card may be a better option?