@Patricia Andriolo-BullStessa is an excellent platform for tracking income and expenses for investors; it is user-friendly.

I've included an example below to help illustrate this.So different lenders have different rates (which do vary even for DSCR loans) but these are factors they all consider.See example below:DSCR < 1Principal + Interest = $1,700Taxes = $350, Insurance = $100, Association Dues = $50Total PITIA = $2200Rent = $2000DSCR = Rent/PITIA = 2000/2200 = 0.91Since the DSCR is 0.91, we know the expenses are greater than the income of the property.DSCR >1Principal + Interest = $1,500Taxes = $250, Insurance = $100, Association Dues = $25Total PITIA = $1875 Rent = $2300DSCR = Rent/PITIA = 2300/1875 = 1.23If a purchase, you also generally need reserves / savings to show you have 3-6 month payments of PITIA (principal / interest (mortgage payment), property taxes and insurance and HOA (if applicable).

Private money may be cheaper, but may be more expensive if they are doing something that most hard money lenders wont do. 

You could trim your expenses by eliminating property management - you can absolutely do this yourself on a 6-unit, even as a newbie.

:Class A Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, 3-5 years for positive cashflow, but you get highest relative rent & value appreciation.Vacancy Est: Historically 10%, 5% the more recent norm.Tenant Pool: Majority will have FICO scores of 680+ (roughly 5% probability of default), zero evictions in last 7 years.Class B Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, decent amount of relative rent & value appreciation.Vacancy Est: Historically 10%, 5% should be applied only if proper research done to support.Tenant Pool: Majority will have FICO scores of 620-680 (around 10% probability of default), some blemishes, but should have no evictions in last 5 yearsClass C Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, high cashflow and at the lower end of relative rent & value appreciation.

I have found I can lower this number if I rehabbed the property myself before I rent it vs buying a tenant occupied property.

I'd expect prices to continue to appreciate, so the longer you delay, the more expensive things may be. 

I gained equity in the property, and I got higher rents which lowered my living expenses while living there.

All else being equal, lower mortgage rates reduce the cost of ownership and, thereby, allow more people to afford to buy.

The problem with using credit card funding is it destroys your DTI and thus lowers your credit score.