DISCLOSURE:  I am a newbie of newbies, who wants REI to be the vehicle to provide income to provide a better life for my family and to fund a better retirement down the road. 

@Michael Smith - The best option is just to use actual funds on hand.

@Jay Hinrichs, exactly, it's far more likely the judgment will be required to be paid, so far more the suffering party, the prior landlord will get paid in the future instead of lenders (i.e. some portfolio &  private lenders) who may not make it a requirement to fund the loan.No matter what, its like attaching a Low Jack that flashes like a Neon Sign when someone pulls a report that says..."

Starting out make sure you have sufficient reserves, minimum 15K, and top it back up as you use it. 

My main concern about keeping HELOC funds sitting in a property is the interest rate is variable and your putting cash flow at risk.  

The parties should agree to cooperate with one another to make sure those funds find the right party.In your case if the management company is the party to the lease then you'll need to review and factor in the agreement between current owner and management company. 

My wife and I are making the leap into real estate investing but obviously we have questions. 1) Currently, to obtain funds for investing would it be more effective to create a LLC business or try to raise funds as an individual?

I've seen Private Investors pool money where their friends cash out of IRAs, 401k, Annuities, incurring penalties to fund loans for borrowers who suddenly go MIA on the day of loan funding!

Has anyone ever used crowdfunding to fund their deals?

To me, for funds already in retirement accounts, it is a no brainer.A couple of the benefits of holding rentals inside of retirement funds vs stocks is that you can essentially use leverage which you are not allowed to do when buying securities.