Frats

1. It depends on the region and the school. Greek life is going to be majority white by default, but in certain areas of the country no one will bat an eye. In others, or one specifically, you won't get a bid. You most likely don't want to be there anyhow though. 

2. It matters in the sense that college greek status matters - i.e. for a couple years you'll have better parties and hang around hotter girls and then you won't care. Don't pick a fraternity because of "status" though. Hang out with the brothers and see where you fit in. 

3. Sure. 

4. Very much. You want someone to go to bat for you in the bid process. 

2- To an extent. An 8 out of 10 in a lower level frat will still get more girls than a 5 out of 10 at a top one. But, being in a top one will put you in situations with hotter/more girls and that will help. Some girls also fall for the frat status bs more than others, especially freshmen and sophomores. 

4- knowing someone helps, but it needs to be someone important. i.e. someone with a leadership position / recruitment chairman / well respected person in the frat. If it's just some guy who just got a bid and no one really knows, it wont help you a whole lot. Either way, at rush events, be aggressive and try to talk to as many people as possible, focusing more time on the people who seem important. 

Go for it

1. Depends on your school. If you're in the south, expect more difficulty if you're not white and rushing a predominantly white fraternity.
2. Again, depends on your school but generally house matters more at more greek-focused school if you're just trying to get with the srat girls. If you're a generally unattractive guy though, you probably won't have much luck regardless and vice versa.
3. Yes. School dependent. General national stereotypes are things like pike guys are rapey (spike) or TKE takes anyone. Not saying any of that is true but it's the general rumor mill
4. Helps a lot, especially at the beginning of rush. At the end of the day you need the support of the entire fraternity to get the bid but having a push / good word at the beginning is always useful

1. Generally, your process will be the same regardless of your race. The fraternity you are rushing should be recruiting for people who fit their values, not looks or race. Each fraternity has their own traits that they prioritize and value over others. If you're asking how bad the process is in terms of hazing, it's safe to say you won't have to go though any of it. Over the past five years, greek life has changed drastically. The national headquarters of fraternities and universities they operate under have cut down extremely hard on hazing and any mistreatment against pledges because more than a few have died being hazed. Most fraternities have either eliminated their pledge process entirely, or cut the duration to only a few weeks while being highly supervised. You won't have to drink to prove your worth. However, from what I've heard the south is different. At your own risk. 

2. It really doesn't mean much, despite what most people think. If your main goal in joining a fraternity is to bang sorority girls, then it matters somewhat. But most of your time will be spent with your chapter brothers. You'll be participating in your weekly meeting and building/maintaining your local chapter via recruitment, campus relations,volunteering, philanthropies, ritual, mentoring pledges, complying with national headquarters, etc. If you just want to bang girls, you'll burn out fast and it's not for you. 

3. Every fraternity has a bad reputation in some way. It's your job to do your research on the local chapter and see if its true or not. 

4. In a "top-tier" frat, the only way connections will help you is if you are a legacy (your siblings/parents/grandparents are alums). If you're a legacy, your bid is basically guaranteed. Otherwise, knowing only a few people in the fraternity won't help very much. During rush week you'll meet most of the brothers in the chapter. If only a few brothers that you know like you but the rest don't, the majority's vote will win and you won't get a bid.