By putting all your eggs in the RE basket means your risk is higher if RE experiences a huge decline for whatever reason.

You are putting all your eggs in the apartment basket.

I've read and listened to some podcasts about the idea of paycheck parking via taking out a HELOC in order to save on lifetime interest payments and own a home outright 4-5x faster.I love the idea of financial freedom and not having a mortgage payment sooner rather than later, but at the same time wonder if the additional $ paid down via paycheck parking could be utilized in a more fruitful way. 

I am also a new investor so I am no pro but I will say 3 important things I was taught to have when investing was peace of mind is as equal as profits, never put all your eggs in 1 basket, and always have a cash reserve.

Some ppl will take the 'low hanging fruit' bc its an instant tenant thats paying vs having to fill the unit.personally I'd take the unoccupied and fill it to market rent. plus it cost less to get rent ready. 

It's wise to have a balanced portfolio and not all your eggs in one basket.

And was your search in Beacon fruitful, and is a VRBO a decent possibility there?

I think the holding period would be about a year so the first year would hemorrhage cash flow (not included in the analysis above), but subsequent years would be fruitful.

The stories like these inspires a newbie real estate investor like me to invest on a good property and wait for the time when it become fruitful.

@James Kojo and @Michael Seeker, thank you for the fruitful discussion.