Chase Sapphire Reserve, AMEX Platinum, etc), so I would love to be able to maximize that while avoiding co-mingling.

(from a Roofing Co!)

And correctly..you cannot co sign as a primary if it's occupied..2+ units can sometimes require larger down payment (as you've found) another option could be to access equity against another property..check in with @Joseph Chiofalo for potential lower down payment options..might be able to get to 15% down..Good luck! 

Will an increase in market activity lead to more investing opportunities? 

Loan servicing co, 

BIGTIME tax hits, owwww)Now there are even EQUITY BUYING/sharing CO’s out there— UNLOCK, Hometap etc.

Your home IS in a location that could make it a good STR/MTR given proximity to attractions and it's in beautiful shape so I don't think the operator is pulling the interest/opportunity out of their a**.Attorneys would probably argue with me, but if their LLC is going to rent it, I would still get the individual on the lease or at least a co-signor guarantor agreement so that you have the EIN and SSN for purposes of evictions and collections. 

However, once I assign a deal or two to an investor with no issue, I will usually cut out my attorney and just deal directly with the investor and title co on subsequent deals.

A property owner has offered to sell a home to a friend in Colorado. 

Couldn't agree more with @John Corey but beware of "asset protection" attorneys trying to sell you overly complex and costly solutions.For me and my wife we have a holding co that invests however it's more for accounting than anything else.