House Hacking questions

[James Devoe]

Hi everyone, 

My wife and I have decided to go for house-hacking for our 1st investment. 

I was wondering, a few things. 

1. How do I structure things so that we have as little liability as possible? 

2. If we get a house in the winter, do we wait until the spring or summer months to have tenants to sign a lease? Or do we have them sign a lease agreement right away?

3. Should we let tenants know that we are the owners?