I posted an ad on craigslist and on Zillow Rental Manager to try to find a family interested in moving in, but are there any other suggestions on what I could do/where I could post to increase my odds of finding someone willing to take over the lease? 

Depending on the results of that, you could look into adverse possession, but the odds are stacked against you there.

You will increase your odds of starting and succeeding by saving up the cash you need for a DB (and a reserve fund) before you even consider risking it all. 

Then there will be a few odd ducks that need lots of repairs or where there is a big 2nd mortgage to negotiate down and you'll be first in line to buy these.I actually like this model better than what investors used to do (negotiating directly with the bank) because it's a lot less work and we as investors can focus on the other parts of the business.

@Daniel Gonzalez, to the best of my knowledge, the odds of subdividing the title successfully into an extra one would be even worse (or at least no better) than just trying to squeeze an extra occupancy onto the same title.

After i take out funds to pay off the credit cars used to rehab, a few thousand to finish some odd-jobs and put some cash back in my pocket that i used to pay off the house, there should be 21k left on this "flip." 

It's just seems odd that he would want to sell but maintain control.

Not stuck in an office all day, everyday.Some cons:-initial expenses and tough to build steam (I'd recommend at least 3-6 months of reserves to get your business off the ground)-odd hours (usually showing homes/on appointments after 5pm and weekends)-lots of competition and rejectionFor me, it's been difficult but also wonderful. 

Go to the store with a budget or $100 on a credit card and odds are you spend at least $110.

For regulatory purposes, the lender has to pay the $30/month or so for the loan servicing company, which worked out to around .25%, hence the odd number.