Looking to Purchase Property(s) with Partners

[Jerry Limber]

I have some long time friends that I am looking to possibly partner with on a real estate deal (or deals if it goes well).  We are still researching the specifics of what market and type of deal we will choose, but we will likely be pooling our cash to cover a 20% down payment and will look to get financing for the rest.  My main question is what are our options for purchasing a shared property like this and how can me minimize the impact to each of our debt to income ratios?  We wouldn't mind having 1/3 of the house count against each of us respectively, but I wasn't sure if that's how lenders calculate it.  

I'm expecting that we will need to set up some kind of LLC to manage the purchase and ideally we would like it if the financing could be in the name of the LLC, but with no historical track record, I can't imagine that's a possibility. I assume this isn't a new problem so any insights and possible strategies the BP community can provide are very appreciated.

Thanks in advance for your assistance!

-Jerry