I just didn't know that this was going to be such an issue for obtaining financing.

Account Closed - New York has court processes for exemptions of minor performers entering into contracts (dancers, singers, entertainers, etc.) to make their contracts enforceable. 

What are some other ways I can obtain financing for a buy and hold single family?

Once they move forward towards doing an actual deal some of these Canadian investors experienced serious issues in obtaining hard money loans and in some cases were unable to close the deal.

Purchaser will obtain title & escrow closing services from:"Option 1: Seller's escrow closing & Title providerOption 2: Other Escrow closing & Title providerIf option 1 is selected seller pays for Owner's & Lender's title insurance policy, otherwise buyer pays 

I’m sure obtaining a HELOC would have been an even bigger pain.

Also, in a lot of cases, the lender needs more information about the property than you can obtain without being under contract.

The problem with this approach is that it results in 3-4 credit inquiries on my credit report, which negatively impacts my credit score and results in higher rates and/or points than I normally would have obtained had I only pursued one lender.I'm curious if others have experienced this issue and have employed successful workarounds to avoid multiple credit inquiries during the loan shopping process.  

Would that perform the same function or is it best for me to obtain a copy of the current one?

Thick gauge is especially helpful where high currents are expected, such as circuits running the air conditioning, electric dryers, and entertainment areas(TVs, computers, etc.)