I usually handle absentee properties so this deal through me for a loop.The home is worth 400,000 as is, the owner owes $310,500 to the bank and had $88,500 in equity.

Syndications require a private placement memorandum (PPM), which can be costly and usually only make sense on larger deals. 

Those people really need help and it’s not just a strategy to make extra cash.

You will usually need some sort of connection with a private money lender before they will loan to you.

@Aaron Lands, what extra expense do you have reconnecting? 

A duplex will usually give you a private yard and/or private parking.

I think there are a lot of people that get discouraged when they don't find a deal the first day or two but it usually takes weeks or months of constant hustle to see results. 

If you pay that, you usually end up getting the place.

I usually hit up north Malibu - around Leo Carillo.

@Andrew Y.Great answers as usual from @Brian Eastman and @Dmitriy Fomichenko  You can do it in an IRA but as they mentioned UBIT will most likely be due if you make money whether it is done in a checkbook LLC or with  the Ira custodian.