I talked to my lender contact and, as Kerry mentioned above, it's pretty uncommon that a traditional lender would offer a HELOC product on an investment property (non-primary home). 

All are local to me in a non-vacation rental spot.

Sellers rarely mind the low deposit and extended closing period due to the nature of the property, or at least they can be made aware of the fact that their lot has issues that will take MY time and MY money to solve and then they come around.My terms on the flip are: Minimum 10K spread between purchase and flip value.  1-2K deposit upfront to hold the property for 7 days then the deposit becomes non-refundable after the 7th day and the buyer has the same amount of time that I originally negotiated with seller typically 8-12 months(its a purchase contract but because of contingencies its essentially an option).  

My wife and I have obtained three traditional loans and one lease with the option to purchase, resulting in most banks turning us down based on debt to income (non-portfolio lenders). 

The Japanese market is different in that it is a high yield cash flow market, non speculative investing.

Even first-time flippers should be able to get these terms: Application/Credit Report/Upfront Fee: $0Appraisal Cost: $0Down payment: 10% of purchase price (= 90% LTV)Rehab funding: 100%Interest payments: Paid only on amount drawn (non-Dutch)Prepayment Penalty: $0Reserve Requirement: $0Max Funding: 80% ARVMax Funding 95% LTCClosing time: Measured in days, not weeksI hope this helps. 

If curious, here are the last two: Jan 2023: Multifamily Real Estate is At Risk of CrashingFeb 2024: Multifamily is at High Risk of Continuing It's Historic CrashI think that the title for my 2025 analysis (likely Jan/Feb publication will be something more like:Multifamily is Finally Going to Hit Rock Bottom in Q2/Q3 2025 - Get Ready to Buy a LOT of itAs usual, I like to publish my draft thoughts here to get input from key players in the space and these forums, especially folks like @Brian Burke, to see if I am missing any high level areas, before I get into the weeds and look at the data more deeply and regionally. 

Sometimes the tenants are coming from shelters or other communal type of housing where maintaining a space my not be solely there responsibility so maintaining the unit may not be to your liking. 

Avoid PMI and then go to a local credit union and get a heloc after closing to gift the money back.Have this as a tool in your tool belt but pursue use of the 3.5% FHA, knowing that you will be at a competitive disadvantage if you are competing with non FHA buyers, then you can call in the favor from your gift person.Just know that if someone gifts you down payment money, your bank will require them to sign a letter stating that it is in fact a gift that doesn’t need to be paid back.

These residents caused so much damage and disruption to the entire complex that many non-Section 8 residents moved out.