Mortgage brokers are probably the most critical and least celebrated component to any RE transaction utilizing third party financing.

If someone has done this how would you structure the deal to make sense for both parties?

Also looking to hear from anybody who has thoughts on the rental market in close proximity to major universities - I recognize the challenge of college students and the sometimes problematic care and need for repairs (that is why I am hoping to target the graduate/PhD/Med student population who might be less-centered on partying and more centered on academics and being responsible...pipe dream?

When I was in college, our next door neighbor was a cop, and he was living there with a reduced rent and was the on-call law enforcement officer in case anything ever went down.We the neighbors were all underage - He would come over off duty and grab some beers...He would also call us and let us know that "Party Patrol," was on its way, so we could tell everyone to clear out before the on duty units could arrive on scene.

Most of my knowledge is off of youtube for the most part. I

The great part is that you are saving those property management fees and putting them back into your pocket or your properties! 

Best part is that they would have VA's with different experiences and budget based off how long the VA has been doing property management.Feel free to DM me if you need any help or if you have plans on scaling using VA's.

But I was able to create a win win for all parties and close the deal.

We do have our account reconciliations audited by a 3rd party quarterly, which helps catch errors before they impact our clients.Highly recommend any owner dealing with a PMC discuss with their PMC and their tax professional, or an expert like @Sean O'Keefe, about how to improve processes and communications to make this process smoother:)

The hard part is going to be convincing the new bank/lender that you are going to be building a Primary residence that close to your "existing" home.