My thinking immediately turned to researching local rental costs per square foot to determine income potential with triple the current square footage.

Just keep in mind the MIP doesn't come off the loan like normal PMI at 25% equity.

The issue is that if they say no, and no one else bites, I've shot myself in the foot. 

I chose Phoenix because it's close the areas I normally post up and has strong fundamentals, and I have built up come community here over the years.

I think it's fair to say it's beyond normal wear and tear, but I'm not sure how much is fair to say "I'm going to have to deal with this somehow, and because of the scratches I'm deducting x." 

Homeowner should have an adequate policy and you can use additional damage protection from services like Safely and Waivo.Yes, security deposits are normal for MTRs and highly recommended. 

.: I just hired an architect to design and plans submit for ADU in my 8 multi unit to use the tuck under parking.Some people say do not try to be the general contractor as it will take way more time, costly mistakes and will be nearly impossible to manage with current work. best to hire a company that will do it all and cost about $250 per square foot.

Most of the designers I have have sort of a baseline price i.e $2.50/per foot but it can go up or down on other factors

As for buy and hold, getting your foot in the door with a house hack is almost always what I recommend. 

Should I use a co-host just to get off the ground on a good foot and rack up some solid 5 star ratings, then transition to self sufficient down the road?