Conforming loans follow set rules and this is what most banks and mortgage brokers offer.

It may violate all sales rules, but I tell new investors fairly regularly not to invest when I feel their objectives are misaligned with the fund we are offering.

Also if the complex has an investor concentration of more than 50%, it becomes non warrantable, again limiting your number of available lenders.  

How would one reach the conclusion that one city has more bedbugs than the other...I've heard the 50% of 2/3 of statistics are half-way made up....

The house was originally a duplex, but the city enforces a rule that a duplex that sits vacant for 12+ months in our zoning district, then it will be a non-conforming use and thus must be converted to single-family. 

A few years ago I came upon a blog post or article somewhere that showed how much money it would take to buy rentals to meet the income of a traditional 4% rule retirement account.

The tenants will use a card to pay, the third party will collect the payments and payout 50% of the gross income to the landlord.There third party will pay landlord $250 in decorating costs and require landlord to make the laundry room accessible to tenants between the hours 0700-2200. 

Think your expenses are light - you might try running it again with 50% expenses and see what you come up with.  

If not, you might look for another agent who is understanding of the principle of a property paying for itself; one who also owns investment properties.I use the 1% rule before looking closer at a property, because my area fits this test: the monthly rents have to be 1% of the list price.

The reason is I know which lenders:do a good jobstay on top of the necessary tasksknow how to be creative within the rules (some people don't fit into the standard mold of a buyer, and some lenders don't know how to get them approved, and some lenders know how to get them approved)and which lenders can actually close deals.Another reason is, as someone like you who wants to house hack, not all lenders are experienced in it.