Depending on the equity you have in the property you may be able to eliminate your MIP.

The lien should not effect the mortgage rate but the lender will more then likely require it to be paid off prior to or at closing and get a lien release that can be filed along wit the mortgage.  

7c ) Can I split the acquisition cost and therefore reduce or eliminate any risks to my personal net worth?

The other thing is that your equity in your home always becomes less valuable/effective over time.

You can end up eliminating a ton of houses by adding that equity filter because a significant number of homes may have unknown equity.

The object of the game is to reduce/eliminate your cost as low as possible while maintaining positive CF, and let your tenant pay for the rest from the rent. 

I would also add that the furnishing will have a direct effect on your returns.   

Since there are thousands of numbers, I want to be as efficient and effective as possible so I can go through many phone calls. 

I would like to purchase another house as a conventional loan and "house hack it" to get better interest on the home and eliminate taxes on capital gains.

I would like to purchase another house as a conventional loan and "house hack it" to get better interest on the home and eliminate taxes on capital gains.