Quote from @Dereck Olson: Hi Nicholas,  Just a thought from the possible tenant's perspective, but filling out a prequalification form and/or providing personal information before they have even seen a place and know if they will be interested in living in the property might be a bit too much to ask. 

What a mess. 

Recently closed a deal with a client that was a 3/1 single family house for $120k and they're renting it out to section 8 for $1550/mo!

Some state regulate what happens to a security deposit when a property transfers.

That said, a VA loan charges you a guarantee fee that is financed into the loan.

Can you hold them in a crisis?

I was in a similar situation for my second house hack.

A tenant doesn't choose how to pay, a landlord does.

You can also build a single family home or a 2-4 unit multifamily so its really up to you and what you are looking to accomplish.

Never built in Houston before so take my feedback with a grain of salt but I'd put money on it being impossible to build a duplex from scratch for $125 a foot (including everything from drawings, engineering, permit fees, general conditions, labor, material, landscaping).Out here in AZ the builder cost is going to be $200 a foot at best, but add 20% on top of that for the client cost.