Plus you can also use earnest money and even non-refundable earnest money if you want to buy you more identification time.3.

As someone who did something very similar to this for the last 2 years - rented out my 2nd private bedroom and bathroom in my apartment (rental) furnished to traveling professionals and medical students - I think it's a great idea! 

If using a lender this is a non issue.

They probably want to be certain YOU are legit.Most of the scams I've seen are by non-owners. 

We rotate locks through our rentals, with a period of non-use for each lock.  

The wrong tenant can lead to non-payment, evictions, and property damage.

Ensure the buyer provides a non-refundable earnest deposit.3.

As a neighbor, personally I don't care if someone smoke a little weed every now and then, but if they are smoking non stop 25 times a day, you might lose a good tenant over that. 

Hey Zach,I work with a lot of non US citizens on the investment side.

That shouldn't necessarily be a differentiator when choosing a lender, as evidenced by the boom of the DSCR lending industry....non of which are FDIC insured.