Hi Brittany , Unfortunately for primary rresidence lending you have to intend on moving in within 2 months of closing on the property.Now for value add houshacking it's sort of a hybrid of the live-in flip and House hack.

One of those months you'll know what it is, but the other 2 you'll have to take some sort of an average and tack it on.

He did all the work finding this deal and negotiating the great price so I agree he is entitled to some sort of acquisition % fee.

Yes, you can get rid of cat urine it just takes elbow grease, heavy cleaning, and possibly new flooring in select rooms.

Investigate government programs such as HUD, USDA, and FHA loans, select investment techniques such as house hacking, turnkey homes, or purchase and hold, and assess properties using tools such as Grants.gov, HUD.gov, and BiggerPockets.Good luck!

That held me back for same time as well but once you select your exit strategy and build your team you will be off to the races! 

There is obviously appreciation and things outside of cashflow but an investment has to have some sort of cashflow.

What sort of contingencies should I include in my offer to the seller if I decide to go forward?

The varied opinions means that you can sort through and select the ones that suits you best. 

But without a value-add strategy you're simply not going to cash flow with that sort of strategy.