I really think the odor was from the previous occupant's animals (as it was problematic with the lower cabinets and not really the uppers)- and because we didn't have animals I was more sensitive to the smell. 

Larger apartment communities can be a different animal in regards to keys as they are generally stored on-site, though one lost, stolen or copied master key at an apartment  community can still cause loads of problems.

These are different animals. 

Also, in the lease under pets, they don't charge a pet deposit, just a clause that says "A reasonable number of pets or animals are allowed to be kept in or about the property.  

Do you have any friends or family, that given a choice, wouldn't rent to a gay or transgender person, an unmarried couple, a single mother, a Muslim, a person with disability requiring a service animal, a person with only SSDI income?  

If you know what you are doing, go build, if not, maybe try to build a single family first before you tackle that animal.

I never, ever require a tenant to be there unless there's animals present, I would prefer they not be there as they can usually do a good job of hindering the repairs going on.Most repair guys will do work after hours if you pay them more, which is a very real possibility with you working a full time job and needing to develop a relationship with them to do the repairs right. 

But, you don't have to allow a service animal, if having that animal would cause a financial hardship. 

Special consideration is given to “Service Animals” that assist a tenant with special medical needs.

I used to own a service dog and they are wonderful animals.