is this loan secured by your primary residence as a HELOC  or are you borrowing against your stock/bond portfolio ?

I sold ownership in one of the companies I had invested in the UK and took out some stock investments that I had. 

. :) My parents are dead

I believe this leaves you with more housing stock to choose from because you aren't in an area surrounded by Illinois.

I am seeking to obtain a line of credit for these so I can tap into that dead equity.

You should have masks with you at all times for environmental pollutants when looking at hoarder houses - animal feces, dead animals, asbestos, gas, etc.As for protocol, hoarder houses are not an easy buy because if the resident is still there it's not a money issue, it's an emotional issue.

Invest in stocks for now and focus your energy on building a business (on the side).

I mention this, because at the end of the day, these are all investments, just like stocks and bonds and private equity, etc.  

Borrowers need to have 9 Months' P&I worth of liquidity (cash / stocks / bonds / crypto / etc), and 100% net worth relative to the loan amount.

I remember the tale about the neophyte stock market player who went to his mentor and said "I just bought a block [100 shares] of IBM."