Whenever you are buying a property out of state you should do a few things to ensure it's as smooth as possible.

In general terms, to ensure things go well, buy in the best areas you can afford and stay East, Memphis has a bad habit of degentrifying the further west you are.

I will take a home warranty if the seller is paying for it but I usually don’t renew and never buy them myself as I’d rather self ensure through higher capex until something actually breaks.  

Could you Hawaii property be a short term rental to ensure cash flow if you indeed hold onto it?

All non-accredited investors, either alone or with a purchaser representative, must be sophisticated—that is, they must have sufficient knowledge and experience in financial and business matters to make them capable of evaluating the merits and risks of the prospective investment.506c: a company can broadly solicit and generally advertise the offering and still be deemed to be in compliance with the exemption’s requirements if: The investors in the offering are all accredited investors; andThe company takes reasonable steps to verify that the investors are accredited investors, which could include reviewing documentation, such as W-2s, tax returns, bank and brokerage statements, credit reports and the like.Again, it would be wise to check the SEC guidelines, but sponsors have the ultimate responsibility to ensure their investors meet the requirements.

Evaluate the indicators to have confidence of continued long term appreciation (market and rent) to ensure that the long term return is likely to continue.Some things to note:We have never got all of my investment (down plus value add costs) out of the refinance. 

I know that a lot of you are grizzled veterans and many of you also started young, so do you have any tips to help ensure that I'm seen as a real investor?

I think receipts need to receive information on a regular basis and ensure the info adds value.  

Stay capitalized, don't over-leverage, ensure all of your properties are self-sufficient, shed any weak performers now, and make sure you're not overpaying for new assets.What's the HELOC concern?

I've been looking for an agreement that secures my wholesale fee with the end buyer and ensures the end buyer I will indeed transfer or sell my interest to him.