An FHA loan is going to have lower qualification standards so if your income normally wouldn't qualify you or your credit score is bad this may be helpful.

@Derek W I should clarify...I will have to edit the "I drive by it all the time" part for my out of state properties but I will definitly use a modified version and I will use this in its entirety for anything local when I get to that point.

The TL;DR version of the question: How should I structure a JV agreement between me (acquisition/management) and a silent partner (capital) specifically for a long-term investment in a vacation rental property?

EVERYONE pays for a good credit score.

A landlord who checks pay stubs, references, credit score might endeavor to de-risk rent payment.

Another option is to look at a DSCR loan, interest rates are higher and a credit score >690 is important, but if the 20-25% down payment you put calculates to a cash flow positive situation, you can get the rest of the money as a loan and after 6 months, apply for a refinance if interest rates are better.

They'll only look into the "point person(s)" on the loan and use their credit score/experience for qualification.

Most housing "reforms" have been rolled back, including no-doc loans and 580 credit scores      b. banks are holding 800k houses on their balance sheets still because they couldn't get rid of them, when banks are in trouble again and need cash, they might flood the market with them     c. big funds own millions of houses as rentals2.

Not just the spreadsheet version of a stack of townhomes, rather what allowed you to own that many doors?

If you go with 3-4 units, you'll have to go through FHA self sufficiency which can be difficult to pass. 2 units does not require this but you can still use the income from the other unit which is a huge score.