I live in rural AZ- Safford to be precise so there aren't many options here, but my sister and I have looked and found a couple of options that we're looking into. 

Beyond the Monthly Management, Placement & Maintenance fees, all other fees in our contract are IF EVENT -> THEN fees.

Beyond the Monthly Management, Placement & Maintenance fees, all other fees in our contract are IF EVENT -> THEN fees.

The IRS is nothing if not precise.

I've read some real estate laws but the way they word them makes it almost impossible to be completely precise.2.

And since you brought up my state, I will point out to you that WSDL will on Jan 22nd no longer be acceptable photo ID to homeland security for accessing airports, that shows you how useful it will be, precisely because illegal immigrants can get it issued to them.  

Find some local folks that work on bigger deals where reg D. placements are common.

I’ve done a little research regarding tax deductions for the portion I am renting out but was looking for more advise for precisely calculating how much of the house I can offset with depreciation for tax purposes.

As far as placement, I think you have a few options:Outside.

Ironically, this placement fee also is negative incentive for the management company to do a good job.