@Christian Artuso welcome to the forums and on starting your real estate investing journey.

That’s how I got started—with little to no money out of pocket.

Great question - start the refi process now while you're working on getting it rented.

At least starting out.

Thanks for sharing and saving me the time!

Renting out a room is a great way to get started, and I wouldn't get too settled into the "going rate" use that almost as a floor. 

If the rental lease started 1/1/2025 it's likely it was technically in service in 2024. 

But it would give you time to save up for the 20% on a refinance in 2 years or give you the ability to use any equity gained to refinance in 2 years.

I started and did it differently.

When it comes to the 203k, just make sure you have a contractor start date scheduled, and be sure to contact your consultant (if you have one and its not a 203k limited) to get the first draw scheduled.