So my near term goal is to build up a stable of rentals to replace some/all of my income so to make this possible. 

Before deciding where to invest, I would encourage you to develop your investment criteria, budget, objectives, goals and liquidity constraints.

Investors love working with her because she's very insightful, but also really understands your goals, and does not waste your time showing homes that don't fit your criteria.

@Cole Cherryholmes it depends on what your goals are.

Our goal is to build a business that improves our community and helps individuals and families establish homes that they love and trust.

@Ratna Eluri While saving money, you'll want to also make sure you're building a relationship with a loan officer who understands your goals. 

Get your profits, then get a better criteria set for buy and hold deals, then start trying to acquire one, if that is the goal.

BTW, long term goals are buy and hold single family or duplex homes within driving distance.  

In short, goals:1) pay off $25k credit cards balance2) get some reserves around $10-15k(for materials) to finish renovation primary3) if anything left, maybe get some cash for down payment for another rental property So I am trying to choose between Cash Out refi vs HELOCI found two local banks that offer HELOCS on investment property. 70%LTV prime+2%(2.25%), got to pay $500-1500 closing fees.Same banks offer cash out refi for rental properties: 75%LTV, 5.5-6% 30 year fixed, 3000-4500 closing feesSeems like, if I go refi I can pull out around $83k ($105k(new loan) - $18k(current mortgage) - $4k(closing fee)=$83k $83k - $25k(credit cards) - $15k(to finish rehab) = $43k (for next investment).I am still researching and shopping around for other options, but refi seems to be a better option for right now. 

The goal is to raise capital from 2-3 parties to invest in a single property and distribute profits over 3-7 years.