Usually, these are tied to your paycheck too which makes the payback simple as long as you are working at that company during the entire payback period. 

This lease does not change the length of your lease term (month-to-month); it simply updates relevant matters now that I will be assisting you with your housing needs.Beginning with rent for the month of September, please pay your rent by depositing the entire amount into the following bank account at (your) Bank: account # 123456; routing # 123456.

I'm somewhat knowledgeable on the subject but looking for like minded individuals to share ideas and possibly partner with. 

Rent out whatever part of it you can to get cashflow to offset the mortgage as much as possible.

My in laws lost their entire retirement savings because their underwriting was too aggressive and they bought several properties most of which ended up with negative cash flow.I am not against refinancing or using a HELOC to buy a property, but The market right now is a property will give you close to zero cash flow (80% down) then you’ll need to come up with another $750 a month to pay down the HELOC and come up with probably another 5-10k in reserves in case the furnace breaks or tenants trash your house or…   Without knowing your financially situation, You are probably better off getting a second job for a year or two to save up for a downpayment then using a Heloc.

But I see step 1 is figuring out what’s in the realm of possibility then go from there.

Buyers have had this power the entire time.

Tax benefits, good investment possibility, cashflow.

I'd prefer my screening criteria to be as tight as possible while still complying with all laws.

Its quite possible.