took out the massive wood stove and am adding a nice split system for heat and ac.  

In my opinion it's probably best starting off with the small deal and working up. you don't want to get caught with a disaster on your hands on that massive property without the financial ability to pull yourself you.

Houston might be more attractive if you think of Warren Buffet value investing approach.

Takes a little longer to close and can be harder to get a seller to accept it when you have competition, but to you the borrower, not having PMI with 0% down is a simply massive boon for you and your cashflow. 

I need to find out what the massive multi-family property managers use...

@Caleb Rigby Warren Buffet has 3 rules which all reiterate don't lose money, however, they weren't major losses. 

Warren Buffet said something very plain but profound - "Don't lose money rule."  

If you're one of the vast majority of Investors who's been "Asleep at the Wheel" and are discovering the massive Equity Savings available to consumers thru REALTOR REBATES, which the U.S.

I make darn sure that have the flexibility baked into my plan so that I can take as long as it takes to buy a deal that makes sense and moves me toward my long-term goal of building a sustainable, massive, passive real estate portfolio, one property, and one year at a time.After that next purchase, it will be back to working hard at my career and other professional pursuits, and combinging my professional earned income with my passive income from other real estate investments to buy the next, larger property 12-18 months later. 

I could get a bridge loan for 6 months until I can HELOC the house and pay off the bridge loan but why would I want to incur massive fees like that when there are easier methods to achieve the same goal?