To improve your approval chances, use rental income from your first property, consider co-signers, and explore lenders that use Income-Based Repayment (IBR) for student loans.

I am exploring options - sell his place, use is as a rental or take some equity out if it to purchase another property (I was thinking maybe a short term rental on the lake)?

However, they can sometimes be higher due to the additional risk taken on by the lender.With a hard money loan, you typically make interest-only payments during the loan term.No, you wouldn't owe any more interest beyond what has already accrued if you finish the project in 3 months and pay off the hard money loan earlyIt's great that you're exploring different strategies for your real estate investments!

When scouting for properties, explore areas on the west side as well as some parts of the east for potential opportunities.

@Ike Okwerekwu Recommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

We are starting to explore options for buying his shares to eliminate him as a risk and a roadblock but still have funds leftover for growth.

This vary heavily town to town. 20% down is great if buying strictly as investment but if you have a way of owner occupying I would explore that route and apply the 20% down to increasing value of property and instead using low money down loan. 

I have heard the summer time season peak is not as large as the winter time but I would still think you would get travelers looking to explore the Colorado Mountains in the summer. 

I'll be exploring these options in parallel.

The big opportunity here is creating a scenario where both parties come out ahead, especially in situations where the seller might otherwise walk away with little or no proceeds.If you’re considering moving forward with this kind of structure, I’d be happy to assist with running the numbers or exploring funding options to make it happen.