Alternatively, I could stick with the hard money loan and refinance into a conventional loan later.I would appreciate any suggestions or advice on this decision.

Alternately, it will greatly improve your negotiating position if you elect to partner with a builder / developer in the area to  actually bring the project out of the ground together.

Connectlinx.com is a great alternative!

Define your target investors: alternative investors, passive income seekers, or industry enthusiasts.

What alternative funding options did you explore?

There is some deferred maintenance tenant want me to take care of in the bathroom and kitchen in a 2 bedroom/1 bathroom house. The work should take about 4-5 days. The work is pretty extensive so I want tenant to move...

Be prepared to provide alternative proof of income if you don’t yet have the required tax returns.

Some alternatives that I have considered is purchasing a single-family home, living in it for a year as a primary and then moving and renting it out, or looking for a single-family home with a decent-sized basement and converting that into a unit.

Unlike the stock market, you can also use leverage, which could significantly increase your ROI.The bottom line is that you can get better returns investing in alternatives (real estate or otherwise) and more control investing in real estate (you have zero control over the stock market).

Some strategies are much easier than others, and it is much safer to start with these (househacking, buy and hold single families, etc..).