In option 1, all but $10k goes into equity in the property.

My belief is that you will be challenged to realize a 10% savings loan n your first effort and there is some chance it will cost more than if you used a GC.  

So if I understand, you would get a loan the normal way and then the bank trust is an extra fee that comes along with owning the property in Mexico?

I they accepted an offer of $118K from my brother but since he couldn't get the loan, we're starting over.

If the interest rates go up to around 7% again do the numbers still work for the remainder of the loan? 

To access your home equity without selling, you can explore options like a home equity loan, a line of credit (HELOC), or a cash-out refinance.

Due to the market conditions I wanted to have a good amount of equity in the building so I only refi'd 50% of the purchase.

I toured the property when they were home and they asked me how the living situation was gonna work, which I explained that my loan said that I had to live on the property for a year, and the tenant next door was on a year lease & he was month to month... so he was going to have to leave.

Similar to what Patrick stated - most have ITINs and have seen a lot of loans like that and those are sold many times on secondary market. if not I know people who still originate I would say they are tougher to sell on secondary market but there are still buyersRe: jay comment - price of notes has doubled over past five years on many loans - especially defaulted or loans with some hair too them. 

Quote from @Beth Johnson: We pass all loan servicing charges through to the borrower including set-up fee, monthly fees, and any servicing charges such as payoff demand generation, and loan close out fees.