If it went to court, he would win with no question?

I would also like the platform to have tenant screening and other options available so that I can leverage that functionality when having to locate new tenants in the future.  

What I was hoping I could maybe do is have one of the LLC function as the "Operations" LLC and it would own the bank account and then all transactions could use the single bank account?

One of the tactics some landlords use is to go to court and get permission from a judge to move into one of the units or a family member move into the unit for 2 years until you can rent it on the open market again.It is an expensive and long process and not easy.

@Alli Issa  some property is just functionally and socially obsolete... it appears that area is that way.unless there is some massive effort by the city to pump money into the area to change those characteristics then in my mind its extremely risky . work on something else.. even for free those are not deals.

Your business card should have the same function.

My father in law has always done things about 70 percent and the house is currently in that semi unfinished state (I spent 5k just to have it cleaned and functional before I moved in).

You can actually educate yourself a little by browsing the Indiana Court databases at https://public.courts.in.gov/mycase/#/vw/Search and see which PM's are in court the most for your target area.

That would be his responsibility to pursue in small claims court.

I know many areas that is considered an arrangement  but I have not been able to find anything specific to how Iowa courts view this.