They have no fees and if they do it is very rare, however, to unlock all the perks they offer you do have to sign up for direct deposit to maximize everything they offer.  

. $250 - 300k max for both combined with down payment and remodel funds.

Run-of-the-mill nice is fine, but to excel, you need to do something different (interesting design, or game rooms, or hot tubs, or themes, or some combination of these or other tactics). 

They seem rarely occupied to me. 

In cities with declining populations, properties are typically much cheaper, but rents and prices rarely outpace inflation.

Making millions a year and often paying $0 in taxes.Short Term Rentals supercharge this:RE pros use cost segregation and bonus depreciation combined with leverage to create massive losses with minimal cash.Combined with 1031s and snowballing, you create a business that never pays tax.

The nicest house on a tired street rarely sells for top dollar.

Some lenders will go up to 80% combined LTV, and if you structure it as a DSCR-based second, it won’t hit your DTI the same way a conventional cash-out would.As for your future rental purchases, consider not using conventional financing at all.

However, there are a few complications that limit your traditional lending options: the property is held in an LLC, your income is currently low due to the ramp-up of your self-employment, the property's future use as a primary residence or rental is undecided, and you're looking for a revolving credit product, not just a one-time loan.Traditional banks rarely offer HELOCs on properties held in an LLC, especially a single-member LLC.

We are debating if we should buy a condo here (we would need to live in a fairly expensive neighborhood such as Westwood or Santa Monica due to commuting schedules), invest in long distance real estate, or some combination.