It's not the most exciting part, but future-you will thank present-you for being prepared.

I'll test it out.

Be prepared to defend it if the stuff hits the fan.4.

You can, and should, interview them and ask them all of the appropriate screening questions - but you won't be able to "test" them out without contributing significant capital as part of your test. 

@Josh Hollman To tackle your $100K credit card debt and prepare for a second rental, consider using a HELOC or Home Equity Loan on your primary residence to consolidate the debt at a lower interest rate.

Lots to think about and prepare for.

Additionally, I don't believe Form 4797 should be generated for this transaction.Please confirm that, for reporting a 1031 exchange from one residential rental to two residential rentals, I need to prepare a separate statement and only complete lines 19 through 25 on Form 8824.

To prepare I would get a good understanding of what each partner can contribute to the purchase (cash/sweat equity) as well as the division of labor.

Some cliff notes:REP status requires 750 hours in real estate activities, and then after you hit that, the test is materially participating in your rental activities.If it is a short term rental with less than a 7 day rental period, if you materially participate, which could include at least 100 hours and that is more than anyone else, then yes possibly can use the bonus depreciation against other sources of non-passive income. 

Being open to and prepared for constant learning only makes investing run more smoothly.