Ultimately a 1031 would have been the smartest move to buy another property and simply do a cash out refinance in 6 months to have access to some of the funds.

Ok so I sold a property for 1,050,000 cost basis was 175 exchanged for another property for 860k.

I completed a 1031 exchange two years ago, but found the strict time limits made it difficult to find a good deal.

@Mike Moran clarifying question, if this a 1031 exchange? 

You could try to do a 1031 and roll the proceeds into a house hack.Your idea of a HELOC is quicker and easier, but you'll get less proceeds.Good luck

I saw an episode of American Greed this weekend, regarding a company called Remington Financial Group that charged an up-front fee to entrepreneurs in exchange for helping them find funding for their ventures.  

The only language I can find is as follows: "Short-term rental means an accommodation where, in exchange for compensation, a residential dwellingunit is provided for lodging for a period of time not to exceed 30 consecutive days."

I am actually selling a few in Dallas to do a exchange in San Diego....

There are some wholesalers out there that do a killing, eventually, they spend the extra time and hundreds to get a license in exchange for time in the slammer.

Since the product is still so new, they've been granting beta testers free access to the product's functionality in exchange for feedback and bug reports.