I invest exclusively outside of Fort BraggThe only benefit of buying in a military town is it can be somewhat insulated from economic downturns. the detriment is military towns are generally stagnant.

When attempting to sign up to use their new portal feature, I noticed they wanted us to agree to some new terms including exclusivity.  

A simple umbrella policy often doesn't properly cover you, especially since many (if not all) of these policies have specific exclusions for cannabis. 

Are those two mutually exclusive, do I have to choose between good bank lending rates and low income taxes?

I never have, and never will, sign an exclusive agreement with a realtor.

@Glenn Jubildo - On top of everyone else’s concerns, that I feel are very valid,  before you purchase a 4-5 bedroom home that you plan to use as student housing, you may want to look into 1) whether or not it is legal to rent to 4 or more unrelated adults in your market (in mine it is not) and 2) if you will be able to find a property manager willing to take on student rentals. 

My grandparents were first generation Americans who were just starting their lives as young adults when the Depression hit - my grandfather spoke broken English and better Italian than English, and had a 5th grade education.

I would recommend setting up a separate bank account for the rental property (even under your name) and use that exclusively for business transactions.

What were were planning on is stating in the lease how the AC and heat would be programmed automatically.There is a gas "wood stove" to help heat the basement unit that the tenant would have exclusive control over.

I'm aware of the exclusion clause.