But in the competitive Los Angeles market, I had to put up additional cash on top of the deal in order to have my loan taken seriously.

Depending on your time period for construction, a heloc could be a great option as it provides flexibility and then you can always reuse later down the road.

@Jon L.Your questions 1 and 4 in the survey are not something a lot of investors would want to provide... breach of privacy etcFor your question in the post here about the most frustrating part, for me plenty of frustration around contractors... finding quality ones, finding ones that haven't taken on too much work to where they bring in inexperienced guys to cover their multiple jobs etc

On my existing units most prefer to pay cash.

I can definitely tell you there's still a lot of positive cash flowing and 1% rule deals and you get amazing appreciation.

We respond on FF and send them a text or email as well, depending on what contact info they provide.

Avoiding a 35% down is going to require a very profitable deal or cash flow on the property. 

For now, I'm a cash flow investor first and an appreciation investor a distant second. 

Some areas have specific departments or webpages dedicated to housing or zoning regulations that can provide detailed information.Another effective approach is to connect with local real estate agents or property managers who specialize in short-term rentals.

How minimal - are you talking like zero cash to put down or do you have some to put up in conjunction with a hard money loan?