Hey @Rahul Gupta, yeah you are dealing with the wrong lenders.

How do lenders usually approach transactions involving tenancy in common? 

Private money lender (a family member).

To use our remaining VA entitlement and put down as little as possible (without paying PMI), and quoted 5.375% interest by Meritage's preferred lender, our estimated cash to close is $72,000. 

These properties are very low value for most lenders.

I would recommend building up your cash up first as most hard money lenders will only allow 70-75% LTV for a first timer.

@Noel Dixon The most overlooked thing I see when people talk about assumable mortgages is that, if you can get approved by the lender holding the mortgage, you will need to bring the difference between the loan and purchase price in cash.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Happy to connect you with some lenders i work with who have STR properties as well as a management team I know that specializes in the STR space.

So, I would have to get a small business loan, either privately or conventionally.