I’d be more inclined to do something else - like put up a motion activated security light that covers the driveway (or wherever the car is parked).

Normally, my first inclination would be to inspect the carpet, although in my mind, I already know the carpet is dirty (time waster).

And then their are those folks, like you, who don't have the time or the inclination for the chase, but still want to participate. 

You may or may not be mechanically inclined.

I agree with some of the other opinions above that if you are looking to actually make a significant profit and if you have the time and inclination to manager the rental yourself, you will do better without a full-service property manager.

But, students are usually young, often on their own for the first time, and definitely not likely to know how to fix anything or be the least bit inclined to do so if they know.

Again, this is not something I would do in our units but if you are so inclined you could have them set up their own account and you can help them hook the nest into their account. 

A greater percentage of those properties are "Mom & Pop" owned properties who may be more inclined to work without a broker.In a study of larger (>50 units) multifamily properties in Florida, Beau Beery reports in his excellent book "Multifamily Investors Who Dominate" (which, IMO, is the best book for MF investors), ~93% of all multifamily sales over a 5 year period were closed through brokers. 

Wholesalers provide a needed service to both the owners of properties neglected by the Realtor profession, and investors who do not have the time, talent or inclination to hunt down these opportunities.

A recent poll, as seen on Bank Innovation, revealed that the banking customers 35-year old and younger are inclined to use non-bank services like Square or PayPal over traditional banking services.