We have one of the largest units (4 bedrooms 2200 sq ft) in the community but the law of conformity is affecting the value of the home, as several homes in the neighborhood are well below $300k (smaller sq ft and less rooms).

I'm not here to conform to your expectations or your psychosis.

70% LTV is the highest for conforming loans.

You also must meet the conforming loan limits and the property cannot be distressed. 

With the newly passed lead laws, the state seems to be getting much more strict about demanding landlords have a Certificate of Conformance for lead based paint issues on both the inside and outside of the house.

They might be more open to unique property types and willing to take on loans that don't conform to the standard criteria of larger financial institutions.

We used a local credit union a few years ago to refi many of ours using conforming loans.

It adds a whole extra level of complexity and cost (especially since legal entities aren't eligible for conforming loans such as FHA). 

Not conformed by the situation I contacted several Insurance brokers and one came back telling me that we can do a "split policy" one that covers the wind mitigation insurances, and another one that offers liability and all the other coverages...

Good for you for looking into REI.One way to approach liability protection is that you can buy the property as an individual with a conforming mortgage and then file a deed to place it in an LLC.