It’s held up great and though you pay a little more up front than laminate you will save a lot of money in the long run.

Down to earth, responsive, very affordable, seems excited to find ways to save you money.

My guess would be they are saving up first and last on a new place by not paying you July and August rent.

If you are looking to save on down payment, doing an owner-occupied property will work best for you.  

For example (and just picking arbitrary numbers here), let's say:Current living expense: $1,800/monthHouse to hack mortgage: $2,000/monthRental income from house hack: $1,600/monthExpenses (including $400 leftover on mortgage): $800/monthIn this example, I'd be losing $800 out-of-pocket per month, but I'd be able to save an additional $1,000 from my day job over my current situation that I could use toward a second property.

Put it in a reit or save more

And if you're still working a while you can supplement with savings from real world work. 

Was considering saving aggressively for about 1-2 years for a good down payment on a SFH or duplex in my area for rental income, but thought I'd also like to buy a new personal home for me and the fam (wife and 4 young kids). 

Then you could use that first year to make those repairs and save money by doing some of the work by yourselves.

I have recently closed on a rental property and have used all my savings on my two rental properties that I purchased in the last two months.