I had tried so many other business ideas in the past. I

Of course, the past is no guarantee of the future but, as this example illustrates, fortunes can be made by simply postponing gratification for a little while.          

From personal development books I read in the past, I knew that a ‘can do’ attitude was needed during times like this and I strongly believed in the old adage ‘if there is a will, there is a way.’

I want to take action and not continue to sit on the sidelines but would like to hear from others that might have been in similar situations in the past.  I

Doing a cash-out refinance with a lender you worked with in the past is literally the easiest thing ever. 

The past is no guarantee of the future, sure, but what I think you will find in Indy or Cleveland is that in some months and years you will actually be cash flow negative due to maintenance, capital expenditures, vacancies and other mischief. 

I don’t think just filling out the RTA (request for tenancy approval) forces you to rent to this tenant.In the past I had filled out an RTA and the tenant decided to rent another landlord’s apartment.

@Sam McCormack I have seen a couple in the past. I

In the past, I have personally used letters to sellers about how a home would change the trajectory of my life and how excited we were to take the old house and rehab it making it our home. 

Since things have changed, policies have changed, and the past is immaterial.