Some things they consider acceptable....moving in grown children and their live in partners, pets without landlord permission,  modifications to unit without permission, bringing in curbside cast off furniture containing bed bugs etc.........Finding regular tenants that pay on time will be far less work and stress than S8.Additionally inspections can be a major pain.

After some major life changes, I have plunged head-first into REI.

Also, a HELOC will "mature" into a different loan product in 10 years. 

Just make sure every week is a productive one and keep chipping away at it.

My day job is an engineer at a major automotive OEM.I've always wanted to get in to RE investing but put it off due to one life event after another.

I wish you much success and can't wait to see the final product.

I'm looking for a financing product - not sure if it is really out there, but I would appreciate some contacts if you have any!

Depends what kind of product you're looking for.This is pretty normal in commercial real estate where new agents are on the phone all day calling sellers back to back to see if they'd like to sell. 

I own hundreds of properties & still do not derive the majority of my income from them.

But definitely a major point for me to think about.