There is only the best for you right now given your risk appetite desire to be active or passive.

And yes, perceived risk is a huge factor.But also, if the appetite for purchasing securitized HELOC debt just isn't there, then most lenders can't lend even if there's ZERO perceived risk.

Most of these folks, unless they have a major change in mindset, aren't likely to have much appetite for or interest in real estate investing.

Your credit union has their specific guidelines that they choose to operate with and that is based on their appetite for risk.The base underwriting criteria for all conventional loans comes from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. 

I'm not sure if there's an alternative, but I'm working on creating a home in CT and there is NO requirement to install a fire suppression system, but I'm doing it anyway. 

Ended up costing around $70k to upgrade fire suppression system, fire alarm, new drawings/calcs, drywall work, etc.

Depends on the appetite for Risk/ Rewards.

@Bob Lett it all depends on what your strategy is, and what your appetite for risk is.

The other thing to consider is lender's appetite for financing in the given areas and of course the actual market if you needed to sell.I only bring this up because I had a client in South Jersey that came to me for short term financing to renovate single family homes in South Jersey that had very nice cash flow.

It all comes down to what are your priorities, how’s your appetite for risk and what is your long term goal.