Neither a private lender nor an owner is going to be willing to have a 3rd position mtg, and unlikely a private lender will take a 2nd.  

That is your primary goal.

I would love for this to be my primary job in the near future.

Go to lunch and ask as a general question has he ever partnered on a deal and was it a positive experience?

I know that because I would be living in it I would spend more to find houses in the area I wanted to live in and I have not found many SFR in those areas that offer much cash flow by my calculations.Option 2:  Buy an investment property and rent for my primary residence for the time being. 

When I purchased my first property I was roughly in your position - I had maybe $20,000 and put down $12,000.

I am positive I already know the answer, but please share if there's a way.

Background:I've currently got 4 SFR rentals (all acquired from turnkey providers) and 1 primary residence.I've got approx $40k in savings(for investing) and just acquired $100k HELOC on my primary residence.Looking for some different perspectives on what others would do with this money for a "next move".Thanks!

I am about to start the process of shopping for conventional loan rates and getting pre-approved, but am concerned if I shop too much within a short time period it will adversely affect my credit score.Does every loan inquiry during the shopping process negatively affect your credit or is there a "grace" period after the first inquiry?

I know everyone starts out under different circumstances and compared to a lot of success stories I'm in a great position to start off.