I felt like I could build a business as a successful agent, piggybacking on the relationships with current clients that I've been nurturing for years, and with some of the capital earned, begin a BRRRR snowball that can pick up speed with partnerships and more success. 

I’m new to real estate investing and have made a goal to earn enough passive income to allow my wife to stay at home with me (if she so desires).

BUT, you keep an extra 2.5% or so on every property that you buy or sell, plus you have all kinds of info and networking opportunities at your fingertips that you wouldn't otherwise.

I would say no because 1) she doesn't report her income (not a good sign) and 2) if you feel a larger deposit or extra prepaid rent above what you would normally require, it would seem that you are already expecting her to be a liability - which usually, they will be. 

@Jorge Ruiz @Andrew Postell thanks for the extra info.

You and your husband used it for its intended purpose and now you find yourself in what is a completely legitimate situation for a military couple with him deploying and you finding work somewhere else.Unless your loan agreement specifically says you can't rent it out before 1 year, there's no reason to wait an extra couple of months once deployment rolls around and you pursue work elsewhere. 

I recently became a licensed real estate agent in the same area (Ann Arbor, MI) to earn some extra income, and to satisfy my life-long curiosity in real estate.

If you can shrink the duration of the  financial burden by providing extra cash, I think that would be preferable to reducing her payments.Good luck!

Thank you for the advice, I will defiantly check that app out...I was just doing my research and was considering a place that I can find motivated sellers who would be willing to owner finance or would help me earn enough income from selling off the good leads that I could eventually pay cash; but after seeing this crime data, I am sorry but I am not going to be considering buying rentals in that area. 

If you want that extra protection get a umbrella policy