Reason being HML's are typically short term loans that are interest only.

You could go the house hacking route with buying MFU, etc.It MIGHT be interesting if you are a traveling nurse to turn your house hack into a short term or mid term rental while you are gone.

NYC laws around rentals—especially short- to mid-term—can be tricky, so you’ll want to avoid any compliance headaches.The biggest challenge with this plan is finding a rent-stabilized apartment that makes financial sense and actually gives you breathing room.

My plan is to add 2 - 6 shipping container type of small houses and an above ground pool at some point to make at least a section of the property short/mid term rentals.

Once you’ve made all of the rookie mistakes and have your SOPs in order, you can go invest out of state with a game plan.

The reason I recommend this is because as a short-term solution incase you cannot go full DSCR right out of the gate.

Heloc’s are best utilized with a short term strategy, ie flx and flip, to BRRRR, etc.

Learn everything about real estate like it's your favorite video game and show your wife how passionate you are and how much you believe in real estate.

While some reductions might increase short-term costs for investors, a more balanced budget could stabilize inflation and interest rates over time.

I totally recognize that is impatient and greedy.My gut is saying your short picture idea is where we're heading since we are taking the same hit with brokerage account (I didnt even mention borrowing against 401k - yes its not advised but my wife and I have stable W2 income to pay ourselves back) Thanks again, this BP community / forum is awesome