Home warranties can sometimes cover rental properties, but it really depends on the specific terms of the warranty and the provider.

Assuming you don't have a mortgage that requires a certain level of insurance, you can get a stop-loss policy covering all the properties. 

It’s a great way to grow faster.HELOC or Equity Tapping: If you have equity in another property, using a HELOC or cash-out refinance could help cover the down payment without affecting your DTI as much.Seller Financing or Creative Deals: Look for sellers willing to finance directly, which bypasses traditional mortgage qualification hurdles.Scaling quickly often involves combining strategies—play around with what works best for your goals.

You will likely need to find a property that will cover most of your mortgage payment, but not all of it.

More and more insurers are refusing to cover disaster-prone locations.

We recommend you get management contracts from several PMCs and compare the services they cover and, more importantly, what they each DO NOT cover.

Before you close, can the rent from your buddy and the midterm tenant cover your mortgage, taxes, insurance, plus a bit extra?

Given your assumptions, you are not going to be able to get enough of a loan to fully cover the rehab, even with a hard money loan, so you'll need to pull in cash from elsewhere.One possibility is to have your mom sell you the house with a personal loan, not one attached to the property. 

Both bathrooms need a complete remodel as well as the kitchen, the ceiling in 2 of the bed rooms are bowed (previous roof leak that was fixed) so new ceiling drywall, appliances, flooring, and paint throughout.

Aside from downpayment, you want to have a solid emergency fund in place, something that can cover unexpected repairs, vacancies, or any other random costs that pop up.I’d also recommend saving more than you think you'll need and keeping a close eye on your expenses.