We all develop coping mechanisms for situations in our lives be they good or bad and then tend to repeat these behaviors during our adult lives to varying degrees. 

Originally posted by Ihe Onwuka:But it isn't $40.It's $40 times however many applications need to be submitted in order to get a house, some of which they will be rejected for even though they qualify because landlords have taken non-refundable fees and are running the process as a beauty paegeant.I agree with your sentiment about the process being run as a beauty paegeant being wrong, but that's not what your ire was about.And although it's not just $40, but $40 per adult, considering each adult must have some sort of income these days, it's still not a large amount of money.

Granted I haven't driven that area in a few years but I didn't like what I saw back then....too many people/adult males "hanging out" during the middle of the day when most people are working.  

I haven't yet made any real estate investments beyond my own personal residence, but I've been interested in real estate for most of my adult life.  

In the meantime, you could find/create a playgroup that has parents interested in doing a co-op type of thing--social time for parents, and then an hour or two of escape time for the adults, while one parent watches the kids.

A friend of mine suggested I search for Adult Foster Care Home companies in the area because he thought the layout of the house was perfect for it.

Find someone that will treat you like an intelligent adult, who doesn't put expiration dates on preapproval letters so that, again, you aren't feeling time-pressured to move before you're ready.

There is a $40 fee per adult applicant so that encourages them to ask questions first.

I found out in my area that no more than 3 unrelated adults are allowed in a property regardless of the number of bedrooms.

For example, income 2 1/2 to 3 times ratio to rent, credit score minimum of 690, no evictions in past 5 years, no outstanding collections of $1000 or more.Have each adult married or not  fill out an application and go through screening process.