I was wondering what your experience has been, good or bad with buying rental property in close proximity to the firehouse/station?

We don't directly manage properties.

This then would allow you to look at a property 1500sf 3/2 with the same rehab as a property in the same condition that you got a bid for 1-4 weeks ago..

For example, I mention that every adult must pay a $30 application fee, pass my credit/criminal background, make a combined income of 3x the rent, and whether or not the property accepts pets.

This means having to take a chance and take the property off the market for 2 weeksOption 2- Accept the offer with a provision that allows you to continue to market the property, knowing that there's a chance FHA may not fund the deal. 

Since you have more time than capital right now, consider side hustles like Airbnb co-hosting, property management for other investors, or even leveraging your nursing background to consult for mid-term rental owners.

Have a frank conversation with the property manager. 

I am a fellow investor also looking for my first property but I also have a contracting and property management company.

Now I am inheriting a huge fixer-upper in Dallas which we will probably live in for a few years after it is repaired.My ideal situation with REI is to buy and hold multiple properties while also flipping a few per year to supplement our income.

Raise the $600K, do the pre-development work, then “sell” the property to NewCo.