Wondering if it's is more tax advantageous to use an S-Corp or a straight LLC for doing my flipping in?

If you got the permits and they are recorded with the county tax assessor, you can list them on the MLS, Zillow, etc as a five-bed with ADU! 

If your lease says he pays utilities. sue him for what he owes, or evict him for the lease violation.  

DSCR also does not look at your income i.e. taxes, W-2, paystubs, etc but rather will look at the potential cashflow of the property. 

We live in Los Angeles, both are self employed 1099 independent contractors, combined annual income roughly 250k pre-tax.

Full documentation with your IRS taxes (do you have 2023 ready to file?)

Also realize that the amount you finance vs. cash you end up paying taxes on that amount.

You could still get the tax deductions...rents will likely go up, interest rates will likely stay flat or decrease slightly, Austin has a great outlook long-term. 

Since beginning I have done one creative finance deal using sub to, one attempted fix and flip, me and my partner own two airbnbs and I have bought and sold many tax properties.

.- Our combined after-tax income is $170k annually.- We have no outstanding mortgage debt.Recently, we discussed financing options with a banker at PNC and learned that we might qualify for a HELOC up to $480k, albeit with a relatively high minimum interest rate of 9.31%.