I'm in no rush to jump in now and am positioned really well with a solid essential job here hoping for some opportunities in distressed situations over the next 6 months or so...

Property Management isn't easy and requires a lot of units just to make it worth your time, but once you cross the mark of having enough units, it can be a solid, complimentary business to your rental properties. 

I have often found a piece of 14/2 Solid Romex attached to the K&T behind the outlet or light switch to fake new updated wiring.

You are like me I am about .8% CoC with solid B and above Class properties where you will enjoy both appreciation and cash flow.

The stability here during the recession, as well as the approachable price points and low taxes, makes it a solid market.

@Anthony Fazekas20% down seems to low on a property this size. 25-30% down would be solid for any lender.

Of course, I wasn't thrilled with that but I figured I'd call this a "tuition payment" and if nothing else I'd have a pretty solid rental with no deferred maintenance at the end of all this. 

I've gotten such solid advice from here and I'm coming back to the well.My elderly neighbor just passed away suddenly.  

If this is your first deal, I would say use the HELOC and make sure you can deliver a solid return before risking someone else's money. 

I'm so adamant about investing from a position of financial strength that I wrote a book about it, and host a podcast every week where we talk about nothing but building a rock solid financial foundation capable of supporting financial freedom and large-scale real estate investments.