A 1br basement apartment in most areas of Denver will pull in a minimum of $2,500/mo, more if you're in a nice area or have a really nice setup)Buy a 4br or 5br SFH and rent out the rooms individually.

Leads are actually qualified individuals that indicate they want to sell.

On these sites I would both look at 1 bedroom apartments and individuals looking for roommates/renting by the room.

Once you have a team of trusted individuals in these 4 roles you'll be ready to invest knowing you are in good hands!

I asked me to add my spouse to the plan but they say she has to open another individual 401k.

Conforming loans backed by Fannie/Freddie are only made to individuals and not business's so anything outside of this would be a commercial or private loan.

I am looking to buy and house hack my first home (STR/rent individual rooms in the house).

In addition to that, I don't even think you can own an STR in an LLC as permits are only issued to individual owners. 

You can also have individual subs do their own drawings. 

It is probably very individual what will trigger you to take action, but motivation, consistent learning and perseverance will eventually bring you where you want to be.