I'm also trying to determine whether to take accelerated depreciation when it's available to me, and what the longer-term ramifications might be.

If loans are going concurrently then both lenders will require a  Letter of Explanation for Credit Inquires for the purpose of determining if your credit inquiries will result in you borrowing money.

Your income will determine how much you can borrow and how much you can save.Unless you are doing something like flips (high risk, and potentially high reward-note potentially as it can go horribly wrong), you aren't going to accumulate a lot of wealth quickly with real estate. 

I can't find very great resources on this topic, and I know it may be partially determined by region.

The purchase price determines the LTV, not the appraisal. 

It is one thing to say you are sorry but your actions determine if you actually mean it or not.  

Trying to determine how to utilize the vacant months (or not).Thanks for the input

You have to determine what your goal is and a strategy and then stick with it. 

But before you do that, I would 1) determine your real estate investment goals and 2) determine how you will be able to fund your deals. 

Depending on your answers to these, that will determine the strategy you pick.