The one big risk is that governments may implement rent controls in areas that do not have rent controls, this would be a game changer.  

I think think that idea has a lot of potential to purchase a single family and implement the rent by the room/student rental strategy especially in a market like Worcester with such a large student presence across the city.

They've since implemented the strategy more broadly.

Thorough Tenant Screening: Implement a rigorous tenant screening process to select responsible and reliable tenants.

This helped me maximize the property's resale value and minimize the impact of the setback on my overall investment returns.By implementing these strategies and remaining resilient throughout the process, I was able to overcome the obstacle and turn it into a valuable learning experience.

We screen every pet on petscreening.com and charge a pet fee when the sign a lease- something in the range of $300.The truth is- if you have stringent tenant criteria- people who pay their bills, go to work and don't committ felonies- they usually take good care of their pets and their homes, too. 

I see a lot of OOS investors try to implement that strategy in Milwaukee and like @Marcus Auerbach pointed out, they look great on paper but CapX and unit turnover continually eats away at your profits. 

There are some heloc lenders  willing to  go higher than a  80% cltv ... revised  idea ...put 225K  down ( 30% ) and  have 275K  cash left over and  some  immediate  equity room for a HELOC ...in the  Seattle marketplace - some sellers  may  shy  from a  VA offer  if  comparing it to a cash or  conventional loan offer...this is  because of the perceived stringent VA appraisal  process that really   doesnt  exist and also  because with a VA loan - a seller is required to pay  for some of the buyers  fees  which lowers the sellers  proceeds ....if a  VA  offer is made on a  proeprty thats  been on the market for awhile - this likely wont be an issue 

By trying to implement this strategy(buy & hold large apartment buildings for cashflow) would I be in over my head as a newbie?

I made most of my money implementing things I learned for free) and create a plan of action.