The good news is you don't need a specialty loan for a house hack, just a traditional primary home loan.

I used Roofstock to sell one of my rental properties in TX as their sales commission is lower than going through traditional sales channels. 

Our issue is income on papers too low to qualify for the an FHA or traditional loan.

There are still a few that will give you a loan but the traditional 90% of purchase price and 100% of rehab might not be possible without an exception.

I’ve had many clients do a traditional 1031 and then they feel like they have a gun to their head with the shot clock.  

Dan, Investment HELOCS are extremely hard to achieve considering they are not DSCR underwrites. they are more traditional conventional qualifications.

(For context, it's a 2700 sf 4 bd 3 bath house in an upscale Northern California suburb.)Kitchen A: Traditional, features a 48 in fridge, 36 in cooktop, window sink (no view), pantry.Kitchen B: Designer, features a 60 in fridge, 48 in range, large kitchen window (no view), sink facing living/dining room; unfortunately no pantryKitchen C: A Little Bit of Both, features a 48 in fridge, 48 in range, sink facing living/dining room, pantry, unfortunately there's no window.Total countertop space is roughly the same (22 ft)  in all three layouts.

If this were my property, I’d run a detailed rental analysis (from what I’ve read in Forbes) to see if the short term route could outpace traditional leasing.

What are the challenges of passive investing as opposed to traditional real estate investing? 

It’s a great way to grow faster.HELOC or Equity Tapping: If you have equity in another property, using a HELOC or cash-out refinance could help cover the down payment without affecting your DTI as much.Seller Financing or Creative Deals: Look for sellers willing to finance directly, which bypasses traditional mortgage qualification hurdles.Scaling quickly often involves combining strategies—play around with what works best for your goals.