Here are five dangerous provisions to watch for in an Operating Agreement:Dangerous Provisions to Watch:Authority to incur debt without investor approvalPower to make loans to other entities/projectsAbility to cross-collateralize with other propertiesPermission to use investor capital for other venturesCommingling of funds across different projectsWhy These Are Potential Ponzi Indicators:• New investor funds could be used to pay existing investors• Project-to-project lending can mask poor performance• Cross-collateralization puts your investment at risk for others' failures• Commingling enables masking of financial problems• Lack of project segregation enables fraudulent schemesProtective Measures to Look For:Strict single-purpose entity requirementsProject-specific bank accountsDebt limitations and investor approval requirementsProhibited related-party lendingClear fund segregation requirementsProfessional Best Practice:Request bank statements showing separate accounts for each project.

We both run our own businesses but we feel that real estate will help make sure we both maintain our life plans of not needed to work as much any more.

It sounds like you might be in the situation I'm in: buying a vacation home that I plan to use as a STR when I'm not using it so that other people can help pay my mortgage.

The scope of what you asked covers a broad area from estate planning, to tax planning and forward. 

While some folks may not change the way they underwrite from one type of property to another, what specific property are you interested in, SF, 2-4 MF, or 5+ MF? 

What is drawing you to that specific location?

It focuses specifically on broker commissions and cash flow forecasting, so you’ll get exactly what you need if you’re in that space.If your portfolio is on the larger side, LoanPro might be worth exploring.

I have 7 MTR and my income is 1.7x my long-term rates ($1200 vs $2000), but that is very specific to my properties, my location, my business model, etc. 

In MA, you can usually get insured with Fair Plan with certain pets, but it is VERY expensive.  

No, he's not an architect, he drew all designs, floor plan, site plan, etc, and we had a structural engineer design his part, and paid an architect to sign off on them.