I'm assuming it works by using this non-refundable EMD or they are simply daisy chaining.Ultimately, how can end buyers be most protected from fault of the wholesaler or property owner? 

Or simply to help the other LLC pay for expenses?

Out of state seems harder to break into simply because I'm not there - maybe Hoboken /Jersey city or further like @Eric Hajdu mentioned are better places to start.Out of state is not difficult to get into. 

I just simply still want to service my accounts here on Long Island so I would probably stay at my moms house for a few months out of the year.

The notion that slumlords believe their tenants will positively be receptive to living in sub-substandard sht holes while being treated with disrespect escapes me.  

I find it easier to work with people and let them know the boundaries they have to operate in with their pets than to simply say no. 

So, the seller could simply hand the buyer an envelope with a cashier's check at closing. 

Laundry line was never connected to anything, it simply dumps onto the ground underneath the house.

I have seen some smaller TIC's with just a very small amount of investors work.High cap rates and STNL simply do not go together.

I used companies that would deliver and install, cut sink and faucet  holes for a few hundred bucks.