However if the bad applicant was say an adult child of the other two and had medical judgements I would accept.   

When you visit a city as a tourist or even with an investor mindset for the first time, your head tends to pull to the emotional side -- what a cool town, love the vibe, I feel comfortable here, this looks too rough ... etc.

Maybe take a look around the area to see how comfortable you feel with the neighborhood and other rental rates.

It all depends on your comfort level having roommates that you will interact with daily.

You can always take it over in the future whenever you feel more comfortable.

If you have 8 houses you may feel comfortable without a realtor representing you.

I would also recommend getting out and meeting some others in the area that are doing what you want to do via meetups, just 1 on 1 or phone call depending how comfortable you are with the covid situation.

I spend most of my time educating and explaining the deal, so they feel comfortable investing.

There's nothing like meeting a child who can't even write a sentence and taking them through reading their first novel.

Hope this gives something to think about.Lot will depend on how much cash you have, what you feel comfortable doing and what price houses available in your area.champak shah