@Tanner Lewis W2 was more in reference to your full time income regardless of whether it is 1099, self employment income, etc. 

That said, ant baits can be effective, depending on the infestation.

Also, no "company towns" like Flint, Michigan or Gary, Indiana where a single employer can pull up shop and the town no longer has an economic driver.

I manage large commercial and industrial properties now for my employer, I am a facilities manager for a large utility company in my area.  

I'm keeping a couple free checking business accounts; I'm a self employed web developer so that has its account and then the property investing, the other account.Yeah, fees suck and I had a great blowup with my local bank where they charged me 28 bucks because they couldn't get their deposit dates straight.

Source: WikipediaIncome persistence: You need a rental income that will last throughout your lifetime, which requires your tenants to remain employed at similar wages.

In general, when you are self-employed (not a w2 enployee) and actively work in your business, you report the income and deduct allowed expenses on Schedule C.

For reference, I am self-employed (I run my own online clothing business, i am 1099-k) and I've always been told that it'll be hard for me to get a conventional mortgage when you're self employed, so I am specifically asking about other types of loan options.  

Predatory bait-and-switch tactics.

The employment GAP isn't always an issue as long as you're now a W2 employee, can show 30 days of pay stubs (not self employed), and you can provide a letter of explanation stating the cause of the employment gap.For a VA loan, in order to use the rental income from the other units you'll need:1.