He said he would be interested in speaking with a mortgage banker or broker to see his options. 

There's turnkey providers with  predatory 2-year balloon options on houses, one's with 50 1-3 post people show up to support them.

Explore options like renting the property as-is at a lower rate, investing in repairs for higher rent and better tenants, or selling if repairs are extensive and tenant hassles outweigh potential returns.

This is one of the main reasons people go with DSCR Loans or other similar options versus conventional - ability to do LLC, especially with the BRRRR Method (which sounds like what you are doing).PS - heres an article published on BP which includes pros/cons/differences on financing options for BRRRRR hard money/refis https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/brrrr-loans-what-are-the-...

What are the options I should pursue when I refinance, should I pursue a conventional bank or a private lender?

Many have an option to join virtually, but if you're going to travel to an area to scout it, plan your trip around some local meetups and attend while you're there.

I'm currently working on getting information on financing options.

I’m ready to start exploring my options to make my dreams come true.         

Point being, perhaps the roof work could be considered just a repair, and you write it off, and ignore my options 1 and 3.3) For a commercial property that is a "trade or business", you can take a 179 deduction on the new roof. 

I suggest looking into an option with low or no prepayment penalty so you can refinance using the ARV.