As it turns out, the profits are nearly identical.Off market is just a marketing term, most of the wholesale properties are very much ON Market, just not on the MLS perhaps, unless they were bought off MLS. 

If you decide to move forward with a second lien, negotiate favorable terms.

If you are willing and able to qualify for conventional lending you will likely get better terms that comparable non-qm products.  

Maybe operate it as a mid-term/short-term rental?

I want to get a “checklist” of what I need to do next in terms of the legal side and paperwork to get this thing rented out (or even steps I need to take prior to renting it out, such as getting insurance and a contract agreement).

In my short-term rentals we of course cover utilities for our residents. 

We are looking to buy our first short-term rental investment property, which is 3 hours away.

It really makes sense to me to hold onto the duplex or condos if you decided to split them for the long term and keep your focus on scaling with your HELOC and $15k saved, but again I am not sure what returns you are seeing if you do a 1031.

It helps determine if the project will meet the desired profit margins.CoC (Cash on Cash Return): I find this particularly important for fix-and-flip projects, as it measures the actual cash return on the cash you’ve invested, giving a clear picture of short-term profitability.Cap Rate (Capitalization Rate): While more commonly used for rental properties, it’s useful in understanding the potential income from a property relative to its price.IRR (Internal Rate of Return): This is a great metric for longer-term projects or those with varying cash flows, as it takes into account the time value of money.Some investors might overlook metrics like AAR (Average Annual Return) or EM (Equity Multiple) if they’re not as relevant to their specific strategy.

Are you looking to hold on for long term appreciation while getting some cash flow or are you looking into other potential investment ideas?