Make sure your financial situation is stable, with a strong down payment, an excellent credit score, and a clear grasp of your budget and objectives.

Ask to see a copy of the lease and look for the length of lease, current rent amount, tenant obligations like paying for utilities and adhering to house rules and look for Landlord obligations like things the landlord may currently being paying for (like trash and water)Make sure to have an assignment of the lease and clear language on the security deposit WITH interest shall be transferred to the new owner at settlement.Consider tenant quality - what’s their payment history looked like, obtain rent receipts or bank statements from the seller to review on-time payment history.

Not bad for not taking a single phone call or wondering if someone will miss a payment....

In my models, I have expenses (less mortgage payments) track the same number so I find the total rate of return to be relatively insensitive to this number.

I could pretty comfortably afford my monthly out of pocket payment due to income and help from my partner. 

His monthly payment is $1365/mo, and the house is 3 years old. 

This means that they are going to look at the ratio of the Net Operating Income (NOI, or income - expenses) divided by the monthly debt service (your monthly payment).

Once we determine the rental value, we aim for a monthly payment to the seller at approximately 50% of the market rate.

Technically, the loan is in the seller's name and us as buyer are simply making payments with no personal guarantee?

My question: is it better to pay cash for one or put minimum down payment and finance 2-4 properties?