The premise proclaimed at the start of this thread is simply not supported by mathematics with the exception of the specific case where the interest rate on the HELoC/secure LoC is sufficiently lower than the rate being paid on the mortgage.

Hi @Shawn SmithI am a US loan officer in Toronto, assisting Canadians to secure financing in the US.

Here is my current situation - I can probably secure a personal loan for about 200k at around a 3-4% interest rate with a 5-year tenor.

For added security, consider umbrella insurance alongside the LLC. 

But after an exchange - sign the purchase documents with one pen and pick up another pen to sign the refi docs :)Another strategy you could consider is reinvesting into multiple properties, where you purchase the first property cash (ensures some security and concentrates the equity) and the second property with a mortgage.

The other California investors with more moderate incomes bought years ago and have built wealth from 30+ years of appreciation and small mortgages and their rental income supplements their pension or Social Security and retirement accounts. 

In our experience/opinion (factoring in security deposit to defer some of the losses):Class A - 0%Class B - 5%Class C - 10%Class D - good luckHope this all helps!

I'm a very analytical person who won't start a new venture without first gaining a solid understanding, establishing the right framework and connections, and ensuring that I'm securing a great deal.

We started looking at coaching programs and some of these things just seem ridiculous at 20-40 grand, and some seem more like life coaching programs as opposed to real estate programs. we don't want to syndicate we really would just like to find someone that we can bounce deals / ideas off of and have them assist in underwriting and giving us a better sense of security that we are doing the right thing.

As Sean Wagner mentioned, the city of Chicago has adopted their own regulations on charging what's commonly referred to as a "security deposit" you need to do it another way.