That's a pretty good deal because you can minimize your expenses while on limited income while also learning how to manage properties.In the meantime, you should definitely link up with your local Real Estate Investors Association meetup as well as any BiggerPockets meetup.

With 4 people you should absolutely hammer those down and try to minimize the notion of splitting 4 ways equally and figure out the most logically split based on interest and input.

Other than that you would have minimal advantages on partnering with a builder.

Anyway you can minimize that is key.

Once the seller left I was able to do the minimal rehab the house needed and rent at market rate.

There's minimal to no other options for short term stay in town.

That said, a good TK provider's job is to put the odds in your favor... to maximize your rental return, and minimize your exposure in doing so.

I believe you need to have a team to help you design your business model, asset protection plan, insurance requirements, and tax minimization strategies.

Some folks become hyper focused on tax savings while minimizing complex compliance requirements.

You can choose the lesser of the two deductions if you're trying to minimize your deductions.