I have spent my entire adult life in the construction business.  

The memorandum (some use a letter of intent) approach is considered a "soft lease option" because the memorandum is generally a non-exclusive agreement that gives the seller the ability to walk away at any time if they choose to do so (even once you've spent all your time and energy finding a buyer and the seller decides to walk away at the last minute), but also gives you the ability to gain an assignable interest via the memorandum in a way that feels less scary to a seller (and generally you can structure the terms of the memorandum to have the rental payments begin the moment you assign, so you don't have to make payments while you're trying to find someone to assign to).You can also gain an assignable interest through a "hard lease option" that is exclusive between you and the seller, and will usually require you to start making payments at a specified date.

If so, you might qualify for section 121 exclusion, in which case the 10k would be excluded from your income.

Also be aware that most immigrants (adult immigrants at least) will have a much lower score than a comparable citizen due to a much shorter than average credit history. 

I'm not exclusive to these areas and open to other towns within a 2 hour drive of San Jose that offer  these kinds of opportunities. 

Keep in mind that most of the deals never hit the website due to an exclusive investor pipeline 

It sounds like they lived in it for 75% of the 2 years needed for full exclusion of gain ($250K if single or $500K if married).  

Families are the best tenants in your area-- most stable, mature, settled and usually 2 or 3 working adults with income.KEY: Make money the day you buy.Use an investor savvy realtor that you personally like and can build a relationship with.

I've talked to a few asset based/stated income/alternative income verification, etc. lenders but most focus exclusively on investment properties - which is great. 

I've informed her that each adult occupant has to complete an application (I'm using erentpayment.com) and the SmartMove credit/background check.