The main thing to watch out for is that some HELOCs have variable interest rates, so your payment could go up if rates do.Then there's a Cash-Out Refinance.

When people think about making money in real estate, cash flow is usually the first thing that comes to mind.

That takes going out and looking at properties. 

Thanks for laying out the details — you’re asking the right questions.

At 800-900k for a 2-3 unit are the deals cash flowing?

They are out there.  

@Noah Schultesi don't know you or anything about you other than what i posted but i would generally advise against doing thisyou'd need an investment to really knock it out of the park with a return to make it worth the penalties and taxes and that's just unlikely on your first trywith respect to STRs... do you want to own and manage an STR? 

Quote from @Seth McGathey: Yes your two main options are a cash out refi or a HELOC.

Existing tenant in moving out in ~1 month and may convert use to primary residence or retain as SFR, but TBD. 

For out-of-state investing with limited capital, consider landlord-friendly, cash-flow markets like Kansas City, Indianapolis, Cleveland, San Antonio, or Birmingham, which offer lower purchase prices and strong rent-to-value ratios.