There are lots of hard money options (or maybe not "lots" but not too uncommon) with no appraisal required - that makes the offer equivalent to cash (closing within a couple days and no appraisal contingency - its out there)The lender still has to ok the deal, appraisal or not.

There aren't many "short-term, get rich quick" type investment options in SoCal today. 

I also want to keep the option open for converting to condo down the road and as long as I am in the apartment doing so much work I might as well.

I know many property managers that no longer use Rhino because they refuse to pay out.The other option is a surety bond.

I'd be happy to connect and chat about the area and financing options.  

In this thread, you repeatedly highlight the IRS position that a Husband-Wife LLC does NOT have an option to file as a Qualified Joint Venture (QJV) and must therefore file a partnership return.

In this instance what I would do is get the deed in lieu from the borrower so you ahve the property again and get a note from them but have an attorney draft it to see if you can include a confession of judgment - meaning if they do not pay then you can get a quick judgment and possibly garnish wages.I would also have them put a small down payment as part of the note and only accept a check that way if you ever did garnish you have a copy of a check so you know where they bank.unfortunately you are right they can stop paying on the note and its unsecured so its a risk but out of all the options this is your best option.

However, it will be hard to make the numbers work if you are borrowing 100% of the purchase price.As others have said, house hacking is probably your best option right now.

Our software has an option to have someone who looks at our pricing daily and tweak yes. 

FHA is unlikely to play nice in this situation.Bank statement loans might be an option for you.