I see this come up on the forums from time to time and as a mortgage broker myself here are the strategies I implement to work with great lenders1.

If you're in an area that has a lot of college students then you might want to think about ways to create the standards you need to fell comfortable with this.

The most tried and true answer to this question is always this:The best CRM to use is the one you will use.

Is this a CoC metric or is it something else?

Did purchase or refinanced this property during the ultra low interest climate a few years ago?

Being 1.5hrs of NYC gives you a lot of options, even Long Island (which typically has more options for public commute into NYC).Give me a shout if you'd like to chat more, I have a handful of case studies on my site as well from deals I've closed/brokered that match the househacking criteria you're aiming for. 

For preliminary numbers analysis, I’m using an online calculator available at this website: https://www.calculator.net/rental-property-calculator.html.

Are there any hard money lenders or alternative solutions that could help navigate this dilemma?

I think this is a sub to deal but idk.  

(Please don't assume that any of this is easy or quick, but the path is semi-straightforward).