As noted above, up to 50% of gross rental income normally gets eaten up by expenses (taxes, management fees, utilities, landscaping, repairs, capex, etc).

I underestimated utilities in my early years, so I ensure those are properly captured (electricity, gas, water and trash).

I talked to a modular home company in my area, and he said to build a 4 / 2.5 2200 square foot home would be 215k, and then foundation and utilities would be another 160k.

Adding the current mortgage and utilities would be roughly $1,350 resulting in a profit of $650/mo.

Gave him 10 months free space rent and paid for all his utility hookups. 

The first apartments I rented as the owner, were previously rented by the former owner at $150 month including utilities. 

Alternatively, once you have a full time job (or an employment contract), you should be able to qualify for a loan and utilize a Down Payment Assistance program.

They were fine with my score (about 740), but have issue with the percentage of personal credit I am utilizing, so that discussion also petered out.Apparently, I have a lending profile right now, that is not attractive to mainstream lending programs.Any advice?

Several have mentioned utilizing low down payment second home loans for qualifying.

Need more information surrounding why your current lender is suggesting they cannot utilize the rental income on your investment property.