Leverage I will definitely look into but my parents coming from very conservative background want to have everything paid off but are starting to open up if we can limit the risk in case of market collapse.  

You have to be careful and not cross the border with the law regarding familial status.I would stick to financial and credit requirements to determine eligibility for the apt.Do credit and background checks on both and let them pay. the links below will help.www.residentresearch.comwww.youcheckcredit.com If they don't qualify, use this failure to move to the next tenant.

Here in Denver, CO, most sellers seem to know that their properties are valuable, and buying property with instant equity (at 80% of market price, for example) seemed very unrealistic, given the fierce competition for every property on the background.  

Back ground I exclusively do double wides on their own land, rent to own, then seller financing...

I just purchased my first property with no background in Real Estate and investing.

When we get the completed application we verify the income and rental history, before spending money on credit and legal background checks.

My engineering and gaming background has turned me into a serial min-maxer, but I'd love to be able to run some basic and not so basic scenarios by people who've already been through a couple+ purchases.Anyway, just wanted to say I'm glad to be apart of the community, and looking forward to digging in and learning even more.  

Background on myself: I am a 17 year employee for my local government.

I have no background in real estate, I am a electrician by trade.  

I understand the concern of not having income and the questions that I've read seem to concern the money, so I'll start by answering the questions asked.We have a reserve of $70,000 though I'd like to keep about 20 set aside.My credit score is 765I do get some income from the military, just not a lot.I have zero debt aside from my personal home.I have a background in construction so working with a partner would be perfect for me but I have a lot of networking to do because I left for so long and don't really know anybody around here.I've basically limited myself to properties at $160,000 or less due to not wanting to put more than $40,000 down knowing that I'm likely going to have to put 25% down with local banks.