Advice on purchasing a property that is seller financed

[Barry Cooley]

Good morning BP. I am a new investor looking for my first deal. I have ran into a situation that I would like the opinion of the BP community.

I received a call from a gentleman this morning that would like to sell his property. So here is the situation: He seller financed his property to an individual who is about 40 days behind on the mortgage payment and will not provide proof of insurance coverage. The deed is in the buyers name. The seller doesn't have a landlord mindset and just wants out of the situation. I would say the  property is B class in a B class neighborhood. However, I have not seen the inside yet. We have not discussed purchase price, or really, much of anything yet. I wanted to get the opinion of more experienced investors as to how you would proceed with this, if at all. I know this isn't ideal for a first investment, but the way I see it, I could possibly help this gentleman out of his situation while possibly getting a good deal on the property. It is located in Athens, Alabama, which is a market outside of Huntsville, Alabama. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.