I have heard from many commercial contacts that some of the markets are soft and couple that with rising rates, I personally would prefer to leverage my residential properties as those rates are still historically low and you can fix the rates. 

You can ask that they do a "soft check" which will get the process started and won't affect your credit score like a "hard check" would.  

AR is typically a soft market state, Bytheville especially so.

Also, every house comes furnished and a lot of accommodating for different items that would never be considered in the US, i.e. negotiating hard/soft bed, larger fridge, installing oven & installing a dryer. 

I simply reposted his outstanding analysis, written in John's trademark soft and politically correct style. ;)

My main concern with it is that area is seeing a massive amount of new construction in both hotels and houses and if the economy gets soft the booking could get very competitive and rental rates could compress and occupancy fall.

I bet you run a seriously amazing, and legit, business.I also have a soft spot for this because I volunteer in California prisons, one day a month and six full weekends a year, and I work with the inmates directly and I know for a fact that so many of them have your kind of mind and drive and skill.

When I decided to sell this property & hired a real estate agent, he discovered that the home was in poor condition & wasn't able to put it on the market at the time.The roof had missing flashing on the gable but the entire roof was replaced by contractors hired by USREEB late 2016 as they insisted that it could not be repaired.The living room floor had soft spots under the carpet & the sub flooring was damaged.

Then you could end the contract if you feel there are extra people there.Of course it is discriminatory to not rent to an applicant for being at the occupancy, so tread softly and document your decisions.We have had occupants at the max, we let them know before they sign that no additional people are allowed under any circumstances. 

In fact, with their new construction homes, which they are concentrating on now, your fortunate if you see any cash flow at all when allowing for soft cost reserves.