Seller financing deal for buy and hold or wholetail. Am I nuts?

[Brian Huber]

Hi, I contacted a homeowner on Zillow who was trying to rent out their house. I asked if they'd be willing to sell the house and if so, accept seller financing.

Surprisingly, I got a call back from the homeowner.  He said he's willing to do lease to own or seller financing.  I asked what down payment he wanted. He said $900. I asked about terms, he didn't know so I said we can address that later. Also, there seemed to be a bit of a language barrier. I did my best to be clear in my talk with him.

I noticed he bought the house for $80K in 2013. Now he's selling it for $60K. I asked why that is and he said his son has cancer and just needs to unload:-(

I looked up the county records on the property and it's owned by an LLC. I asked him who I should list as the seller and he said he'd fill it in.

So I filled out the contract, left the seller info blank PDF'ed it and email it to him.  I instructed him to complete his info, sign it and PDF it back to me. I'll then give it to the title company with the deposit to open up escrow.

I guess I'm shocked that he wants to move forward so quickly and for below retail. I have clauses in the agreement to cancel it if inspection isn't favorable or the title isn't free and clear.

Is there anything else I should be watching out for in this?  I guess I'm being extra cautious because this was through Zillow and it's my first potential deal. Do I have my butt covered?

I know @Brian Gibbons and @Michael Quarles so any help would be eternally appreciated:-) Thanks!