I totally underestimated how much work that would be and even though I would not want to miss the experience, it was a huge time sucker and did not make much money - I respect builders now a lot more: it's a though business to earn a decent income! 

Be brutally honest with yourself and switch roles for a moment, if you were a professional investor who had 80k sitting around, would you really give your hard earned money to a 23yr old with no proven track record of being successful so that he could go do a deal? 

My thought process is,  I can earn enough interest to cover the interest only payment for the HELOC and hopefully double my investment when the syndication refinance or sells.

When I’m not aligned, I lose money.The truth is, there are huge differences among real estate investors in results achieved and effort spent, that one must conclude there is more to achieving than action alone.5) The Time Factor – In real estate, everything is measured in time, with the faster you can earn money the higher your ROI.  

That portion of the funds is only earning the .5% (or whatever) return the cash account pays.Great food for thought though, thanks again.

You leveraged that capital to earn 8-12% cash on cash returns plus plenty of tax benefits. 

@Dillon LeRoy Pollard If you really want this it's not that hard to cut expenses and earn some side income in order to build your cash. 

That is basically how volatile are your earnings and what will result from the distress (deferred CapEx, interrupted renovations, missed payments, foreclosure).

However, I've begun using a CPA to help with my tax filings staring for the 2021 tax season and I pay him to navigate the rules and regulations of what is required.I have heard of CA pursuing "unpaid" taxes on out of state residents who have rentals or earn income in CA, so for my situation, it is worth hiring a tax professional to ensure I am doing everything correctly and am not hit with a bill 5 years from now from unpaid taxes + interest claimed by CA.

@Bill Plymouth If a realtor is bringing me off market deals, running analysis for me, or earning his commission through other beneficial means, then I totally agree.But if you have a deal and you want to purchase it, there are a million and one realtors that can do exactly that.