The loan does need to be secured by the property being improved if we are talking about a personal residence and personal itemized deductions on Schedule A.

From personal experience, this can motivate them to do a final deep clean before handing over the keys.Finally, for peace of mind, you might consider consulting a local real estate attorney.

When all the dust settles, and the  person searching is tired and discouraged and gives up, Jerry may not have bought  a single lot, but he's made some money from the training he sold you, which was his main goal from the beginning!

Go in person to the planning department and talk to them.

I have also utilized owner financing for longer periods of time, including personal residence and 2 barrier island houses on the coast of Florida.  

Usually my time spent with newbies last a minimum of 1-2 hours on our first meeting (either in person or on the phone).  

I have not seen a significant difference in this area between section 8 and non-section 8 tenants, personally. 

With that said, I have personally seen a lot of activity in the last two weeks.

You want this to be your backup plan if things take longer than anticipated, you do not want to dip into personal credit cards so i would use a heloc to help with down payment but try to keep a nice available balance on a heloc as your insurance policy. 

I would say the same for employees who need say a second advance on their wages (we allow one).I am willing to make a personal loan if an employee really needs it and you could consider doing it that way with a tenant in need.