Long-Term: Appreciation, loan amortization, potential tax benefits, and housing expense savings.I'd say the unexpected benefits of learning property management, deal finding, project management, renovations, and DIY-ing were more impactful than I initially thought.

I managed the properties myself, and was offered a job out of state that required long-term international travel. 

@Jay HinrichsYes and pretty expensive, $10,000 to $20,000 depending on market coverage.

It's extremely difficult and more expensive to find a lender offering a HELOC on investment property.

They tend to have higher DSCR ratio requirements than individualizing the properties.  

I've included an example below to help illustrate this.So different lenders have different rates (which do vary even for DSCR loans) but these are factors they all consider.See example below:DSCR < 1Principal + Interest = $1,700Taxes = $350, Insurance = $100, Association Dues = $50Total PITIA = $2200Rent = $2000DSCR = Rent/PITIA = 2000/2200 = 0.91Since the DSCR is 0.91, we know the expenses are greater than the income of the property.DSCR >1Principal + Interest = $1,500Taxes = $250, Insurance = $100, Association Dues = $25Total PITIA = $1875 Rent = $2300DSCR = Rent/PITIA = 2300/1875 = 1.23As mentioned earlier in the post, DSCR lenders generally let you vest either individually or as an LLC.

These types of sales can be complex and require a different approach than traditional sales, and they often represent opportunities to buy below market value.5.

I will be the first to share I understand the value in being able to recycle capital through refinances to grow a portfolio but this should not be done at the expense of other fundamentals that are more telling of the properties current and future economic performance.

As a broad rule of thumb, the 50% Rule for SFRs states that about half of the rent will go to non-mortgage expenses.

I'm going to echo the idea that the bells and whistles aren't required if you just have 1 property.