I would not advise you to pursue a house hack that you cannot afford without a tenant, due to the nature that it will certainly take time and mistakes for your first rental to stabilize. 

So it's pretty risky to put loans out solely on relationship with no skin in the game.

They also use conservative leverage, and put huge skin in the game in every deal (10% or more).

Also important to understand who the natural tenant is for the commercial space.

When we invest to CD basically we become the lender (to the goverment/to the people).As cash position now can exceed equity investment (in some circumstances), it's just natural that we invest more into debt/cash than equity.

It's just the nature of this real estate business.

Overstating the profitability of this endeavor by grossly understating the competitive nature of the bidding, the sophistication of some of the players as to research capabilities, etc.5.

Most likely the state where the property is located is where lawsuits would be brought if they are something for personal injury like a trip and fall or something of that nature because the “cause of action” arose in that state.

A private lender would be very pleased with that degree of "skin" in the game.  

If purely financial in nature.