And, you cannot set forth financial qualifications in a lease; it would be the equivalent of saying that he can't get ill, lose his job, change jobs, date/marry/divorce, get hit by a bus, have a bad day, be in a car accident...you know, life happens whether we want it to or not. 

if his rehab does not work out or he gets hit by the bus, last thing I want is judge throwing out my foreclosure lawsuit based on the fact that the mortgage document is “illegal due to high interest rate” 

If the areas of Ohio are doing well where your friend is investing take a trip out to his/her market.

5.Any good places to eat/drink and places where I can just talk to the locals After my trip, I would also be happy to share with you all what I learn!

Problem was the third girl was on a business trip and can't be present for the lease signing, but will sign when she comes back.

Since I keep all real estate (and associated credit cards) in a separate account, I do not want to use a credit card to pay for trips etc.  

Well my 1st trip many years ago, I could not believe I was in Cleveland.

You can't go to a car dealership & get them to give you statistics as to why driving your own car is better than taking the bus, same thing here. 

I am rather ambitious, wanting to get into this thing called real estate investing running on both feet, not tripping, stumbling, and crawling to the bank.I’ve located a multiple SFH portfolio in a solid area for rentals.

It will probably be a few days before you hear from me due to me being on a business trip at the moment.