One of the reasons I bought a beach place is because STRs in the area we vacation started tightening up what breeds they would accept.

Cap rates:  Cap rates have been expanding, but sellers think they will tighten. 

I definitely agree with your sentiment regarding borrowing from family/friends, and I don’t want that kind of strain on my relationships.

If you're lucky, you'll get some money from him and can consider it a bonus.I recommend you tighten up your process.

Your job is to keep tightening it up (geographically and based on asset type) and meeting investors until you have a buy box that makes sense for you.There is also no point to running deals through a calculator if you are seeing them.

Look for sellers who need to sell—due to financial strain, property issues, or other urgent situations.

As lending tightened up, I had to start putting 25% down. 

This discrepancy can strain property owners financially.I onboarded a customer and later found out he was way over the set furnishing budget.

This allows you to pivot when you can get a more favorable situation.Renting:Pros: Flexibility, less upfront cost, maintenance covered by landlord.Cons: Limited equity building, rising rents can strain affordability.Buying:Pros: Potential for long-term wealth building through equity and appreciation.

With inventory tightening and competition increasing, what strategies have been most effective for sourcing truly undervalued properties?