I do like the idea of reducing the risk of party damage but does the potential damage outweigh the vacancy?  

Reduce services and/or combination of both.

Maybe offer your buyer a reduced finders fee up front and let him complete the deal directly with your seller. 

Everything in this situation went smoothly and I believe that having them sign the lease in advance reduces the possibility of a cancellation because the tenants have signed a legal agreement.

In addition, it has a 4.7% rate and can have a term of 15 or 30 years, which would dramatically reduce the financing costs on any potential deal.  

On one hand, if you took on that debt into your name jointly you could probably reduce the interest rate.

Although, as Jason mentioned, paying extra principal every month would help to reduce the interest payment and also the length of the loan, but since the 30yr fixed mortgage is a close-ended loan, that extra payment is not helping my cash flow, and it does decrease it significantly.

By placing good tenants, I reduce their losses which results in more money in their pocket.3.

If you cant quite qualify, then charge slightly more in rents, that will also help reduce your debt ratio.Bottom line, if you want to go forward, don't listen to banks that tell you no.

She is now more than three months behind, and now the Housing Authority has reduced her subsidy.Given that she is on month-to-month, can I serve her with a 30 day notice to quit, or does S8 status trump all and require a 90-day notice?