This is typically due to a high principal and low median rent within the area or its remote and I believe it may be a struggle to find tenants.

If the alternative is wait 5 years for a down payment on something you don’t live in, you stand to likely gain substantially by moving on this decision now and collecting rent, principal pay down, appreciation, and tax benefits in those 5 years.  

@Carlos OlivaCash-out Refi:Pros:Fixed interest rate - providing stability in your paymentsLump sum payout - one-time lump sum, which can be beneficial if you have a specific investment or expense in mind.Lower interest rates - compared to HELOCs because they're first mortgagesCons:Closing costs - higher which can eat into your equityResets mortgage term - If you've already paid down a significant portion of principal.

Please take time to read the Syndications thread here with the never-ending horror stories of paused distributions, capital calls, loss of principal, inability to redeem and so on. 

By short I mean about 6 months to buy a DSCR backed house and then I pay off interest for those 6 months and the principal and then I become sole owner?

Since both scenarios pay off the principal (year one vs. year 22), how is the principal handled when calculating the total return comparison?

You are paying down principal and that goes into your ROI calc.

you just made my day.. thank you for the kind words.Renovo is for real and those I know in Chicagoland have used them one of my clients used them or uses them and I was a partner on one loan they did for us.. ( silent partner) I met one of the principals at a Christmas party in Chicago one time or no it was an open house. 

Provide a short term mortgage to someone that will use the 20k to buy a property and earn 12% (or more) on the principal balance.

Instead, a lender will want to see that the property currently brings in (or has the potential to based on market rents) enough to cover the monthly principal, interest, taxes, insurance and HOA (if applicable).