Like I said originally, this feels like it fell into my lap with a big bow on it.

With an IUL you earn compounding interest on your money and can also pull a certain amount of money per year tax free, the easiest way is taking out a loan on your policy (which never has to be repaid, because it's your money anyway).

I like @Michael Anderson's answer.Two big advantages you can offer to local investors as a private lender are 1) reliability of execution and 2) speed.Meeting local investors at REIA events will create greater trust than simply advertising your services online.People are rightfully skeptical of private lenders, so meeting real estate investors in person and letting them know you are local and actively lending is a great first step to gaining trust.Once you execute well on several deals, word-of-mouth, the most powerful form of marketing (and the only one that compounds) can provide you a substantial tailwind.Best,Michael

This will be my second STR with my first being in Broken Bow. 

At 10% ($72), it would take 7 years to bring rents to market (this is simple math that doesn't compound rent increases but also assumes no increase in market rent over that same time, so it's probably close to a wash).  7 years is unrealistic and makes no business sense.  

The tenants in the creative houses also have access to the compound and can interact with the other creatives. 

I recommend "The Compound Effect" by Darren Hardy and "The Talent Code" by Daniel Coyle.- Consider joining a team for 1-3 years.

(A suggestion: if you don't already, I strongly recommend using a late fee that compounds daily.

I currently live in canmore, previously rented in banff for nearly 8 years and run a Facebook page bow valley home finder 2.0 so know the area rather well. 

Phase 2: At traditional “retirement age,” I will have the option to take distributions from qualified assets I’ve built up over the years that will have compounded nicely over multiple decades.