It's a rent house through and through and unlikely, I think, to get much traction as a private home, although if I go the agent route I definitely would leave vacant.I would love to hear the opinions on this.Thanks in advance.

I've done this at one property, and I found out where the property owner works - so i may try that route. 

Also - this post from @Ali Boone -Which Real Estate Investing Route Should You Go?

If you do however decide to go that route, check out a blog post that I believe Josh created showing you how to create a very inexpensive one.

Check out the O3-E, or O-4 retirements in case you end up going officer route. http://militarypay.defense.gov/mpcalcs/Calculators/FinalPayHigh3.aspxFor what it's worth, an O5 who retires today with 20 years will take home only $2,630/month after taxes.

I will go that route if its absolutely necessary.Any thoughts on how I would get this done or who I can use to help me create the note?

Financing is tougher there if you are going the financing route, but not undoable.

I look forward to learning what I can, to determine if this is the route I'd like to take to achieve my goals.

. ;)  If the math shows that even after PMI, it is still better to put less down in these times of low interest rates, then that is the route I want to go.By the way, I forgot to mention this in the original post, but it might make a difference on how people answer my question:  I am looking for SFR or a duplex under $115K to begin my REI career.

These loans are NOT sold off as MBS, but are instead held on the balance sheet of the originating bank.I am not a banker, so my explanation may not be picture perfect, but that is a rough idea of how that world operates.As @Chris Martin mentions, the GSE underwriting looks at ALL mortgages you are involved with of any significance, so you could potentially choose to do a couple more Fannie deals before going ahead with the portfolio route, but you can't do it the other way around.