Hi - a lot of people in your situation move from conventional to "DSCR Loans" for this exact reason - since its hard to scale meaningfully when needing a DTI ratio to qualify (one of the main benefits of DSCR is no DTI ratio in qualification).Check out this 10-part guide on all you need to know on DSCR Loans published on BP!

That's the standard way it's handled around here. 

What is a standard commission for buyer's agent?

I’ll also check out all the others!!

1) make the payment directly from my HELOC account2) transfer the money from HELOC to business checking account, and then make the payment from my business checking account.

@Maria PutnamI wouldn't start with a private lender... since it's your first investment I don't think it's fair to put their money at risk.I'd just save up enough until you can get a more standard hard money loan.

When I moved to Maine, NAR membership was required for MLS access.NAR likes to push a narrative that members are held to a higher standard than non members. 

Check out the BiggerPockets local meetups here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/5212.

1) make the payment directly from my HELOC account2) transfer the money from HELOC to business checking account, and then make the payment from my business checking account.

Check your state laws and your lease.