Once you have a few other properties going then you can think about the need for an LLC for property asset protection. 

Marvin.I think that selling your house and moving to a house where you can afford the payments is a smart move.That will allow you to save you cash which then you can invest that cash into assets that will produce cash flow for you.Your personal residence is not an asset.

If the property is vacant, you take a bridge loan where your usually pay interest only until the asset is stabilized.

Do a search in the search bar above for "LLC+Tax" and you will see that LLCs are for asset protection and don't offer tax avoidance.

It also doesn’t make sense to buy as a business entity since you won’t have much assets to protect if you buy with low down payment.

It is always easier to do this in the year of purchase because there is a little more red tape involved by breaking out assets after the year of purchase.

What the roll looks like, your cost basis, when you bought it, the occupancy history of the asset, the market etc.

The percentage depends on the deal and the type of deal it is, whether they're lending on the asset (purchase price) or the post rehab ARV.The asset based lender will lend around 80% of the purchase price (after their own appraisal of the value), leaving you to cover the remaining 20%, any closing and carrying costs, plus the cost of the rehab. 

My current hurdle (and I'm imagining this to become more prevalent with the federal limit on property tax write offs) is that our exposure with the LLC. having a free and clear asset is large and homeowners insurance is denying us when I ask for a LLC.

Otherwise, there are generally no strict caveats here as long as you get the proper advice on moving the funds an setting up the correct entity for ownership of the asset.