And, imaging having one in running it all and "poof" then there gone, holly-heck that's a nightmare right.

Not many people want to live with 5 random strangers while simultaneously sitting on milk cartons as chairs. 

it sounds like you're really eager to deploy a bunch of capital into supposedly cheaper markets, but you're not going to cash flow $500 on a random single family anywhere unless you are self-managing and super hands-on and prepared to deal with rough turnovers.  

I searched Redfin by random target zip codes, even in those states where median house prices are relatively high, and still was able to find scores of properties listed on MLS for less than $50,000.

Go to the magnifying glass next to your profile image up top.

That is not luck, that is not random, that is suicide.So conclusion,  the people you are trying to skip trace (and pay money for to skip trace) are not just "a bad " audience.They are the worst possible audience.

It's certainly easy to find the answer to should I create an LLC, but even searching people is kind of random sometimes.

The only random thought that come to my head was I Just thinking about lateral versus vertical scaling.

Rent by room is an option that many people do here but even then it's not easy, and several randoms living under the same roof calls for its own problems and likely a lot more turnovers, so I'll see.

These sellers can be more critical of everything you do i.e. the property description posted, choice of images to upload, frequency and time of open houses, negotiations etc. 2.