I ate a lot of rice, apples and other inexpensive food to get by. 

We are on a 2 year time frame to complete these two ADU’s and move on to a new property so the JADU is no longer an option.

Are there lenders out there that are more lenient on the seasoning period time frame?

You'll want a great team in place that can - work efficiently and in a timely manner considering your loan time frame- communicates very well as you are remote and not at the place- priced well.

I think they have some more inexpensive options to start, but it is a user-friendly and has tons of analytics built in.

Amazon has many different security cameras and alarms that are pretty inexpensive.

What do you think your estimated time frame would be for moving back to CA?  

Much less than option 1, but much quicker timeframe.

Duplex produces more income, easier to rent, easier to repair and in expensive markets has the potential to appreciate more.  

Some considerations are the type of loan (Conventional, DSCR, etc), the type of property, the market the property is in, the location, your income and employment, the timeframe on the cashout - the list goes on.Generally speaking, you *should* be able to cashout refi up to 75-80% LTV of the appraised value after rehab, usually following a seasoning period.