If you meet with a contractor that doesn't have a pad of paper, tape measure and/or laser measure, a ladder and a source of light lol kick them to the curb or expect a large change order once the project is started.

If I were to receive a loan from any one of the recommended sources, such as private loans, hard money, seller financing, etc, for property that I want to rehabilitate and then rent; while I am rehabbing and placing the property on the market, how likely am I able to be granted the permission to defer payments for the loan until I get tenants?

You will have to pay the money back no matter what source of funds you use (lender or HELOC).Also a partner is the most expensive option.

Aside from the value of the information here, if nothing else it's a great source of inspiration for me to come back to.I'm mostly focusing on single family (if multi comes up I'll happily look at it but it tends to go high - feeding frenzy - in my market).

We still live there and have a bunch of equity now.Other than that, I have owned a small business as a sole proprietor and only employee.

If your sole definition of Real Estate investing is buy-and-hold for cashflow, then yes, you should move out of LA.

It is like buying a stock solely on the basis of its dividend yield. 

For those who have a primary source of income that can support the debt, a loan might still be possible. 

Some traditional sources of funding include; business loans, loans from friends, mortgages or secured transactions on assets you already own, saving up money from your own income, starting a non-profit and getting grants from the government, etc.

Push the money into federal municipalities, state municipalities, and paying off your most profitable property in my opinion.Federal and state municipality funds are tax free investments, and mine perform in the 8-9% range, which means tax effective 11-12% range, equal to that of a decent cap return for real estate, plus they usually pay monthly.on top of that, the last thing the states and feds wont pay is their water, power, and sewage bills, hence why its a good steady flow of income.Also, it gives you three sources of solid residual income.