My goal is to leverage that equity for additional income.

The income requirement was $6000.

Part of those cuts included the short-term rental tax loophole, a strategy real estate investors can use to help mitigate their rental income tax by offsetting earned income with real estate losses, and could be renewed or extended.  

I use apartments.com, so the money didn't end up in my account until 1/6/25.Is this considered income for 2024 or 2025? 

After five years you'll have earned $90,000 in rent income and gained $34,000 in appreciation.Buy four houses with $50,000 down on each.

(income = 3 x monthly rent, Debt-To-Income, etc. can still be used!)

Being a real estate professional allows you to treat the income as non-passive, allowing higher high income tax payers to pay less in taxes.

But in my experience, you would be better off spending that same amount of time/hustle working a second part-time job with guaranteed income, then investing in buy-and-hold properties. 

I mean myself and any bank would need more details, but if you utilize that large sum as a downpayment and have a small mortgage, wouldn't you easily qualify for the debt to income?

This creates two loan payments ($100,000 of equity and $300,000 on the new mortgage).Key NumbersHome Equity Loan Interest Rate: 6%Mortgage Interest Rate: 7%Rental Income: $3,000 per monthExpenses (management, taxes, insurance, maintenance): $800 per monthIncome and ExpensesMonthly Rental Income: $3,000Monthly Expenses: $800Monthly Mortgage Payment: $2,000ExplanationThe investor earns $3,000 in rent each month.They pay $2,000 on the investment property mortgage and $800 on other expenses.This leaves $200 profit each month or $2,400 per year.However, you have to pay $6,000 interest on the equity borrowed.This leaves you with an annual loss of $3,600.While the rental property generates positive monthly income, the interest cost of borrowing the initial $100,000 results in an overall loss.