Sure, I could look for a higher paying job, but I was wondering if anyone has any creative short-term methods to improve my ratio.

Any capital improvements on a not owned yet property would involve a complex 1031 you’d want someone like @Dave Foster involved in. 

This money gets added onto the back of the loan kind of like a VA funding fee does. 

Don’t forget heloc, DSCR, 2nd on primary, borrow from retirement accounts, credit card cash advance, property reserves, home improvement store credit, etc etc.

The loan does need to be secured by the property being improved if we are talking about a personal residence and personal itemized deductions on Schedule A.

You're probably better off getting a Hard Money Loan.

There's a decent chance that if you have good credit and improve your DTI over the next year, you can put a Heloc on the property while it's still your primary to unlock some of that equity if needed.

SLS and Lakeview manage troubled loans. 

Been looking at hard money loans, and also looking at doing a 401K loan from my w-2 job. 

Hey Jack, There are two types of loans investors use in their BRRRR strategy. 1.