Screen tenants thoroughly, have a solid lease, and maintain an emergency fund for unexpected expenses.

The one guy I spoke with said they make money only when they sell to potential investors and they only sell new construction homes that are usually pre-leased to buyers (currently they are building in Texas state and Missouri State).

A broker shall not be responsible for supervising, nor shall the licensee be responsible for operating, within the scope of the brokerage or within the requirements of this chapter, activities that would be considered property management, including leasing, maintenance, and repair, so long as the real estate being managed is "individually owned" or "entity-owned" as defined below:(1) "individually owned" real estate is real property in which the licensee holds an ownership interest; and(2) "entity-owned" real estate is real property owned by a corporation, limited liability company, partnership, or trust, within which entity the licensee holds an ownership interest as an owner, trustee, partner, or officer, or in another beneficiary capacity.

Currently you have a STR lease and can effectively move anywhere the job market takes you.

Was fortunate enough to lease for higher than expected rental rates.

If cash flow means you make $8 more than your mortgage payment in month 4, awesome, you have $8 for that month.But.... if you factor in closing costs, make ready costs, leasing costs, repairs... it's typically years out until TRUE cash flow, with a value add or a turnkey (unless you absolutely knock it out of the park with a BRRRR and then somehow cash flow after the refi, which I guess is possible but very unlikely.)

I personally inspected the properties, managed and participated in the rehab, interviewed and placed tenants under lease, and performed all of the ongoing maintenance and management of the rentals. 

Are the units bought or leased?

Research market rents, carefully calculate expenses, and ensure you have a solid lease agreement.

They’re requesting what feels like an unreasonable amount of information, and the demands keep escalating.So far, they’ve asked for:A video tour of my home officeCredit checks on me and my partnerCopies of the deeds for every property we ownA copy of my partner’s home lease and utility billsBusiness phone billsA signed letter from the bank verifying our accountsBank statementsHonestly, it feels more like qualifying for a loan than trying to become a customer.