Personally prefer SFR..Not sure about DFW but do have a realtor reference for you..be sure to budget for furniture and furnishings if not sold turn-key..a seller concession is a great way to preserve capital for MTR or STR's..check in with @Joseph Chiofalo for an investor friendly lender..he's excellent at helping structure loan programs for investments.

That's not normal and it's never been in most places across the world.The reality is that being able to invest with a bank putting up 70% of the purchase price at a low interest rate is an excellent deal.

Our current renter is likely to be renting for 4 years as she has kids at local school and 4 years would see them through to going to college.We have an old detached 1.5 garage that has functional automatic garage door, and just fits their car....not that they do it very often as I think it is a challenge. 

Being accredited or not isn't that big of a deal, it's more about why and where you want to invest.I am concerned that you wrote "I would like to start in syndication" because that does not fit anything else you said.

.- Plano: A bit more expensive but offers excellent schools and a strong job market. 2.

Will we find a new washer / dryer to fit into this very tight space?

These small outskirt cities may develop excellent school districts(like cary in NC) but the industry growth plus school is rare.

If it's near the Lylo Swim Club & the LA Fitness, I would say this is 100% worth exploring for sure.

This can make it challenging to find competitive terms if you do not fit a certain credit box. 

. :)You will need a degreaser, Dawn and hot water is excellent, gloves, a bucket, cleaning cloths, and a lot of elbow grease.