The lease/option as described will be 2 separate documents; the lease can be a standard rental agreement. 

Also if I feel they are not actually motivated to act on a deal I send them I would rather not send it to them.Maybe a better option would be to communicating to your current realtor that you want them to be actively looking for you and sending you on market deals.

(but mortgage would be under my name still).  

They don’t mention about being licensed.

But @Jacob Campbell there may be a way to thread the needle. 

I also have no intention of investing in rental properties in the UK no more due to a lot of horror stories and potential new changes in laws, which is why I am very eager to explore the US rental market.I am not a US citizen, my partner is and it will be a joint venture.

I have really only been looking at 32208, would this be considered a C neighborhood?

Her husband was a known drinker with a history of conflict, and it was clear that a straightforward eviction wouldn’t be easy.

What you can be 100% sure of is that projections will not be met.  

Use HML to fund renovations• During this time, pay holding costs OOP (including P&I with PMI), any left over money can be used to build up next savings fund5.