So is this just as simple as showing how much the property makes or do they also look at personal debt to income, credit score, reserves etc as well.

•Verifying the buyer’s ability to repay (documenting their income is key).

Gross rental income divided by 2 (50% op ex ratio) equals net operating income. 

Wondering how I can trade my expertise + experience for income - Building small cost-effective market-based tenant focus groups?

High-net-worth individuals, private lenders, or experienced investors looking for passive income may be ideal partners.

If you are purchasing a primary home, income could be a challenge if you work at an office.

I am based in the Athens, GA area, passionate about building a sustainable income through real estate ventures.

One good thing about building a 2-4 unit as a primary is you less money down and you can use the other units as income to help build a more expensive home.FHA allows for a higher loan amount as you get into the 2, 3 and 4 unit homes and its still only 3.5% down.

Don't be suckered into buying cheap properties - unelss you know exactly what you are getting into.Here's some copy & paste advice that applies to just about any Midwest rental market:--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Recommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?

Single family is restricted to single family, no income generation.