I could pull a heloc on my existing primary home (in Florida) to purchase the land and use towards the build along with cash (50/50).

I do have a mortgage on what was originally my primary home two years ago.

As a side note, feel free to throw suggestions and let me know its a dumb move to buy property as primary residence and pay 7.5% mortgages, sit out. :) I wont mind at all.

There are also documents they require you to sign that state that you do not intend to use the property for a primary residence now or ever.

There are lenders that allow credit scores down to 640 for primary homes and 680 for investment properties. 

Two of those properties ended up as LTRs which also made decent returns so I'm not a total newbie to real estate.So I've got three projects I'm looking at that will affect timing etc.1- My wife and I are currently more than half way through building a new primary residence house north of Asheville, projected completion in October.

Hang up is the inability to house hack (I’m living in our primary w our family of 6), our VA is tied up (so no lower down expectations). 

My primary goal is to discover the most effective advice on how to commence with limited resources.

My wife and I purchased a primary home about 1.5 hours from Los Angeles, CA and are looking to give short term rentals a try. 

This will be for my primary home so will really lean on an architect/engineer.