Depending on your income, credit, outstanding loans you may be able to put down as little as 5% only if you plan on living in one of the units. 

. • If a SEC 8 tenant has an outstanding landlord judgment, HUD will not reissue their voucher so they can move until the judgement is satisfied or a payment plan has been agreed upon. • SEC 8 tenants are educated in the process of home inspections and are quick to call if they see a problem that may compromise the house, such as a water leak. • In Hampton Roads, SEC 8 pays “market rent” in every city except Portsmouth, where they pay 90% of market rent. • After the first 12 months, SEC 8 will consider a reasonable rent increase, regardless of the lease term. • SEC 8 tenants almost always pay a portion of their rent.

@Jamar JonesYes Jamar, that total would be the outstanding balance that the owner is responsible for

I can't tell the timeline, but there is a chance the loan officer did not make a mistake and that underwriting for this company is where the final say is made on outstanding loans like that.

You would also need to get everything in order on your end, things like your entity documents, asset statements to verify your downpayment/reserves, make sure there are no outstanding liens/judgments or accounts against etc. 

Could a title agent be able to identify which properties have outstanding debts from previous tenants?

There are many areas that will give you outstanding appreciation if you buy the right property. 

I ignore credit score but look at credit history.. number of outstanding accounts..how have they paid their accounts in last 3 years.

Also, make sure your property is up to code and doesn't have any outstanding liability issues.  

Having a duplex is great experience owning a property and being a landlord - and that's the experience you need to get under your belt you can't get by standing on the sidelines.I don't know your area and if this is an outstanding deal, but I am rooting for you to go for it and get your first step in the door of real estate investing.