People saved money, bought a house in a neighborhood they liked, rented it, and held onto it forever.

The HOA is money hungry so they will never ban short term rentals. 

However, these are the types of deals I’ve done many times which accelerated my climb up the net work scale, culminating in my being able to sit back and live off the interest from my hard money lending/ discounted note purchases.

They actually have contracts with corporate clients and so your pool of prospective renters are higher.

NEVER sign a lease until you have all the money, including security deposit. 

Most are actually pretty helpful if you reach out and ask questions in advance vs being hostile when they make you jump through hoops completing applications and preparing for the P&Z hearing.

You can buy deals at at 15% down (if it's turnkey) or lower if you're using hard money (for a BRRRR-type scenario).

If I’m able to get an offer accepted at below 150, say 130 or 140, and put 20% down, would I be able to pull my money out of it @ the 80% after the appraisal?

You’d be shocked by how little actual screening many PMC’s do!

All money has been given to him.