These are two separate contracts.Third Rule -  Never give rent credits...ever.Forth Rule - The Option Consideration is the act of the person buying the Option. 

The properties and the loans will most likely need to be in your personal name (no LLCs), and you'd need sufficient credit, income, and DTI to qualifiy for both loans simultaneously. 

Conventional loans require as low as 5% down depending on your credit score and other factors.

Start by looking for hard money lenders and talk to smaller banks and credit unions.

Credit, DTI, collateral, etc?

I ended up deciding on a home equity loan instead of a help due to credit issues.

Both units are rented, and I have spoken to banks regarding a line of credit to use towards the purchase of another property.Community banks so far are not interested in giving a line of credit, but have offered refinancing options instead.My current rate on the property is 3.75%, so I'm not eager to move to a significantly higher rate (5.25%). 

@Christi Hawkins  Much like the auto industry  do we think everyone pays the exact amount for a vehicle .. do we think someone who sits there and grinds away for 8 hours might pay a little less than someone not as familiar or as good as another in grinding the salesmen the manager who gets the hand off and the close.this is why I LOVE Tesla you buy on line price is the price for all of us.. and it takes exactly 3 to 10 minutes to buy the car.. its GENIUS.. and why its such a threat to big auto... if you have not been on the Tesla site check it out see how easy it is to buy a car.. the finance part is auto matic too just put in name rank serial number and your approved almost instantly..you do need to put 2500 down on your credit card then they configure and produce your car..

No real estate license and mediocre credit looking for any advice on taking my initial REI plunge.

Yes 100% if you qualify based credit, and experience.