If your certain you are doing this I would recommend just doing a cash out on your properties, around mid 7's.. having the funds available and put them into a savings account earning 4-5%..

Does anyone recommend investing in this area?

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND HAVING A GC WALK the property with you...if the thought is even crossing your mind then the answer is yes.Up here in Chicago we charge a fee of $197 to walk properties a provide a page report with ball park estimation.With contractors especially you get what you pay for, so find SOMEONE WHO KNOWS THEIR TIME IS WORTH SOMETHING! 

Does anyone have recommendation on home equity loan lenders around the area to unlock the equity in the house. 

Do you have any other recommendations for me? 

@Grayson GrzybowskiI recommend checking out the BRRRR calculator. https://www.biggerpockets.com/brrrr-calculatorThis will show you the key metrics before and after refinancing a property.

If you're going to use national average data, I would recommend using all of the other national data to provide as a benchmark. 

There is a robust community here in town though for STR/MTR - I highly recommend connecting with the meetups and the locals that are STR experts!

I would recommend reaching out to hosts in the areas you are looking at and see how it has been for them.

The other lesson I learned is that the right fit for me in this investing process is to long term hold the properties I purchase, rather than flip them, unless market conditions are so good that flipping makes sense.Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?