Just avoid the whole issue.

That's not my approach, personally--I'd rather just negotiate a great seller financing loan for as long as possible, and avoid the headache and hassle of refinancing for as long as possible. 

I want to avoid the break up and she moves out and he stays and can't really afford the apartment? 

Government intervention: we are avoiding states that are aggressively going after landlords

The down side is dealing with your brother, which I would avoid for your sanity. 

EDUCATE YOURSELF - yes, it will take time, but will lead to a selection that better meets your expectations & avoids potentially costly surprises!

Avoid bidding wars altogether by avoiding listed properties. 

EDUCATE YOURSELF - yes, it will take time, but will lead to a selection that better meets your expectations & avoids potentially costly surprises!

If you would like to avoid taxes, another option is to take out a mortgage or home equity line of credit against the property and use that money as a down payment to buy another property and now have 2 rental properties generating monthly income .Hope this helps Judah 

If your in a good shape financially and can apply a down payment to avoid PMI, I would.