Or anyone have suggestions of alternative routes to the normal path most new brokers take to find a mentor? 

I can get normal financing but, I've seen that this can be a better option with less down.Any advice is welcome

When you refinance closely prior to a sale the IRS often interprets that as a way of taking profit that would normally be taxable. 

This was my first year as an newbie investor and HOLY **** I got 3x the amount back than I normally would.

@Robert TuckerHow are private loans normally structured?

I normally don't weigh in on introduction threads, but I thought of something you might want to consider.

Yeah, this falls into "lifestyle choice" - they can do whatever they want.

Bank financing is normally ready in 30 days, but it takes roughly another 30 days to get the city to stamp off all the other documentation.

It's been a fun experience hearing everyone's stories and is super inspiring to see what people are achieving.Having been a long time Dave Ramsey listener I finally got out of debt last year (minus my house) and am ready to step up my investing to live a more free lifestyle.

So the normal calculation is Appraised value * 70/80% - existing mortgage/leins = HELOC amount.