These strategies reduce living expenses, offer easier financing options, and are ideal for college towns, urban centers, or large employers.

Once you have steady employment, look for a place where STRs are allowed, with an in-law suite. 

You can still pay for a service to do backgournd/credit checks and employment/rental verifications.Some states/cities have their own rules, so you need to know what your local rules are also.

These self employed 2nd mtg's are typically based on alternative method of caluclation like profit and loss statements if you're self employed or the last 12 months of bank statement deposits using a formula to derive an income from these deposits (like 50% of all annual rolling 12 calendar month deposits X 50% /12 months = monthly income).

A Solo 401k which is exempt from UBIT on leveraged real estate may be a better option if you have legitimate self employment activity. 

My property is in a depressed area walking distance to the largest employer in the area which is a shipyard. 

I have little over 100k in an IRA from previous employer.

For both the applicant(s) and a co-signer, you want to understand their habits...financial, employment, legal, character, etc., as Bad habits in one area typically carry over to other areas, and will land you a poor Tenant (or co-signer) choice.

First of all I put my acceptance criteria clearly in the ad: minimum credit score (enter X amount, 620 is what I use),income 2-3x rent, good rental history, references, no evictions, acceptance dependent upon background check and employment verification, pet policy, desired lease term, etc. so that people will hopefully read that and not come to the open house if they know they won’t qualify.

I prioritize applicants with a high income-to-rent ratio, a good to excellent credit history, and a stable employment record.