Where operators get into trouble in larger MF is lavish assumptions going in, placing the wrong debt on the deal, and not stress testing the deal/market. 

I know I know ton of dead equity.. but i like it at my age.. no debt other than super low interest loans on cars..

The only other option is non-agency aka subprime, there is more flexibility on the LTV and income as you can do a No Ratio or Asset Depletion or Bank Statements deposits or DSC (debt service coverage)

It's those maniacs that buy homes cash via quit claim deed off of craigslist that really get screwed.Make sure your property manager is a licensed real estate brokerage.Understand you can not eliminate all risk, only mitigate it.

Lenders will want to see all sources of income and all debts for the last two years.

The other problem will be having sufficient income, verses your monthly debts, to qualify for the loan.

This meant that the appraiser would then take the current rents, which couldn't service the higher debt level.

If you factor in all your costs including debt service 1% generally in not enough; you really have to hit 1.25 or 1.5 to cover everything and have some left over.

You can also tweak your investment criteria in the exact way you want (for example, if you want to go ultra conservative and not have any debt, you can do that.

Work things out with people with good communication and respect you can probably eliminate a lot of bad juju.