I will be doing the work along with a friend and we plan on installing about 800 square feet of Vinyl.

Luckily, I had a good job through the recession and rented out a room to a friend, but I've often thought, if I had lost my job for some reason, I may have ended up losing the house because I had no equity and no real savings. 

heres how to mitigate the problem : request a second walk through tour with the realtor and explain it will take about an hour and your brIngIng a friend .

Maybe do a "secret shop" and have a friend or family member call and inquire on the property to see if the PM is easy to get in contact with and set up showings. 

In most states, you will need to be "under" a brokerage, this can be a large chain like Keller, or even a friend who has a brokers license and allows you to "hang a license" there. 

This can add value to a sale for an owner/user looking to do a new restaurant and could also utilize equipment and improvements. 

Also, would doing a house hack with a friend be a good or bad idea?

I have friends and their friends who want me to help them purchase some properties (single & multi-family units) in the states (a way for them to keep their assets safe and growing) and they would want me to manage those properties for them. 

Jim, thanks for the reply my friend!

If it’s a land lord friendly place.