The national average pre-COVID, FYI, was 9%.and last but not least, a profit reduction coefficient of negative (300k * ((mortgage interest rate) +(2nd home interest rate modifier))...Aka interest on a 300k loan.Again, the debt service is accounted for in the cashflow neutral proposition.

I was looking in Pennsylvania, but couldn't help but think how amazing Costa Rica, but don't know how risky it would be to invest in a different country. 

Josh,Here's a few options you can go.Invest in REITS - The most passive real estate investing you can find, get paid through dividends just like stocks Note Investing - Pretty passive and a little risky I think, but basically you become the bank and loan out your money profiting from the interest charged.

Think it's too risky to spend half of my HELOC or half my reserves to purchase a cash-flow break even single family? 

Thanks in advanced-MikeIt sounds risky to me. 

When looking at the opportunity to increase NOI through decreasing expenses the ability to bill back water/ utilities to the tenants clearly looks like a winning proposition.

Salinas is a nice area, but the increased risk is not worth the drive and investment. 

To add to that, at big companies you have hundreds of people leaving monthly that all of a sudden aren't because it's risky to switch jobs right now so there's even less hc to hire more.

Looking at the other numbers for him how much risk is he?

Diverting attention to the stock market is risky and may result in you losing the those three extra months that you otherwise would have been paying down principal.From a moral point of view, those that don't need a deferment shouldn't get one.