Navigating the financing nuances is where I'll need the greatest help, since there are 110 ways to skin the real estate purchasing cat, and none of them are totally clear to me (yet).

I prefer the old style arcade consoles over a TV/X-box setup because of the ambiance and old timey arcade feeling, but that might be just me.And yeah, paint the floor and walls bright and colorful and throw in a mini-split.

You're being unhelpful -  I would not put it as colorfully as that, but I think the over all point is that to some degree your general mentality may not be as conducive to the way a lot of landlord dynamics work.

The dark side of real estate syndication that nobody talks about 

Created en suite bed/bath, extra bedroom/office/playroom, created family/tv room, added a couple of windows in dark rooms, installed new HVAC, ran all new pex lines/valves/shut offs, all new hardwood flooring and carpet, all new and expanded kitchen cabinets, new appliances, converted 1/2 bath into full bath, repurposed 2 unused rooms (1 into a 4th bedroom/office/playroom and one into a family room, installed new interior and exterior lighting, new electric garage door w/remote, and landscaping What was the outcome?

Also, you are right about wanting to have a deposit from the tenant, so they have some skin in the game to take better care of your property.

The shutters would be for looks only, so no need to have an arched top IMO.Cool, the trim and eaves are a dark red now.

It should also make potential LP's more comfortable knowing you have considerable skin in the game plus the fact you are profiting from the merits of the actual deal at time of sale rather than collecting fees.

Some want to see skin in the game. 

Im looking at 7% however I think a better safe guard for me to have enough skin in the game is to move the sales price higher just in case he decides to pay off the loan earlier.