Particularly in Philadelphia where there’s a ton of red tape to navigate and construction costs are disproportionately high relative to other markets.Ten years ago I could walk into a district L&I office, complete a two page application and pick up a building permit without plans for a single family renovation the next day.

While living there, we'd like to live for free, and after moving out, cashflow at a net amount $500-1000 and have a property manager manage it for us. 

There's no trees on the lot at it's manageable for someone to stay for 3-5 years.

Recently, I managed a home renovation project where the contractors were paid at closing, which significantly boosted the sales price.

I own a business checking account to manage rental income.

Personally I would call your local investment guru agent or property manager and see what you can do.

Since you're purchasing your first home, you likely don't have this rental history.Lease Agreement: While a signed lease agreement is a positive step, it might not be sufficient on its own for a lender to consider the rental income in your mortgage application.

Blaming Loopnet for an allegedly bad property manager is like blaming Zillow for an allegedly bad realtor...I'm sure if Loopnet was stupid enough to give ransom money to BBB, BBB would take down the bad reviews and un-filter any good reviews (which is the entire business model of BBB).

Also, there was a pre-move in inspection by a management company and no statement of cat urine smells or smells of any kind were noted.

The scenario: $295,000 purchase price (my list was $299,000), 100% occupancy, $1,900 monthly rent, with taxes ($1,856), insurance ($768), and property management (7%) the only expenses.