The ONLY exception is that a landlord may charge two months' rent if the tenant qualifies for utility assistance, the lease requires the tenant to pay utilities directly to the landlord, and the tenant and landlord agree in writing.

Am I ok with this plan to ride up the appreciation, mortgage pay down and rising rents?

But will have to pay in the US.  

Also, make sure you have a great property management company who can be your "boots on the ground".

You don't need to pay anyone to learn.

However, aside from that, I couldn’t find much information about them, and the only online presence seems to be the wife’s LinkedIn profile (though I’ve never met her in person and am just going off her profile picture on Zillow).After submitting the application through Zillow, we attached our income (two months of pay stubs for each of us from our current jobs), work references, credit and criminal background, rental history, and the contact info for our current landlord (who just so happens to be my fiancé’s father).

As an out of state investor, am looking to work with wholesalers, agent or bird dog who can walk the ground .

Another option is to invest in the market instead of paying down a mortgage.

A tenant not paying has nothing to do with us either.

Insurance would cover it, I would pay the deductible, and no assets would be lost.If you are in an area like San Diego where people are more likely to sue, a judge is more likely to find you guilty, and the payout is expected to be higher, you may consider an umbrella insurance policy.