To use a HELOC to pay off a hard money loan can also be a good move.To use a HELOC to pay off an existing mortgage rarely makes sense as you are just trading one loan for another and usually its HELOCS that carry a higher rate (and are variable) than a traditional mortgage.

Those who have good jobs usually buy homes — I read a stat that 65% of people in Cody own a home.Maybe I'm a bit misled by stats, but I don't see — with the exception of the rare screaming deal — how a rental property could cash flow here, especially considering I wouldn't put more than 20% down on a place.

If I buy 6 more rentals (available loans I have currently after selling some off) and sit on the properties for say 7-10  years, I project between principal pay down and cash flow after increasing rents over that decade will be $1,500 a month combined per each of those 6 properties...9K a month just for THOSE new purchases.

Your total expenses look low when Vacancy (5%), Maintenance & CapEx (15% combined), and Management (10%) are figured in.

I've designed my own software (I'm a full stack software developer) that automates / manages all my properties, I am my own property management with turn-key properties and on-demand contractors for everything, so rarely do I have any issues managing. 

There are a lot of variables and combinations that may play into it but again as I said everything is negotiable.

I'm not too concerned with calculating PM costs into it until later in life when its either paid off or refinanced at a lower payment.All combined the leverage would be a conventional loan for 80 percent and a HELOC for the other 20, none of my direct cash.With all that in mind, the following questions come to mind about whether this makes sense or not.Technically, if I'm using the HELOC completely or majority of the purchase, would that mean my CoC return is effectively much higher since its not my own money (directly, I know its my equity) as long as I don't make my own payments on the HELOC?

Now you're looking at a combined $300-400k equity and you can buy a nice size building/complex.

@Jacob Kline and what I mean by “calculating #s off of the payoff from contract price” is that I’ve got a purchase price written in the contract as: “Buyer and seller mutually agree that the purchase price will be the combined of payoff plus $amount net to the seller”

In rare cases you can even create new inexpensive capital.