Sitting around waiting and hoping will get you no where.Also, history seems to repeat itself.  

Wait another year so I can have two years of work history/W-2s.

Quote from @Amy Breen: I feel compelled to point out something important about this post and its author's posting history.

The 2005 loan shows it as a first lien so I assume they cleared the history somehow but they are unwilling to share the policy.

Show the lease agreement, show his rent payment history, and show any written evidence from the tenant that he admits to being late/unpaid.

However it is largely based off of relationships and working history.

I look for liens that will be removed or that may stay, ownership history, platting, zoning, exit strategies, cost & profit analyses, and above all else; I physically look over the property.

Take advantage of it, search old posts (learn from history), and read as much as possible because that's how you get unstuck and out of analysis paralysis. 

What documents do they require, what credit scores do they allow, how do they verify previous rental history, etc.?

Even if they stopped reporting your payments the history would be there.