Hey, I will be a first time home owner soon and I want to cashflow it as soon as possible.  What are some blindspots that I should look out for?
House : 3 bdrm, 1.5 bath, 1,200 sq feet., half finished basement in a n...

Apologize for the delay, send them a $50 gift card to a local restaurant and tell them you hope they enjoy the new bathroom. 

It's kind of a loop hole...The funds can come from another person as "Gift Funds" but again you need to avoid showing it was from a loan.

Are gift tax or any other issues here considering the huge price difference?

Bring them a gift basket from your home town/state.

@Bob Bowling - I'd love to send you a copy of the book I recommend above as a belated Christmas gift...send me your address and I'll have it sent to you. 

I found my own calling and discovered a gift for solving real estate puzzles and family's liquidity issues.You, Ben, have no doubt found your own voice and are making a good living in real estate.

In Texas you cannot give "valuable consideration" which is defined as a gift valued at more than $50 or cash or equivalent (rent credit) of any type.

Most investor friendlies will require Buyer Agency of some type, Some will smarten up by having a service you pay monthly for only to get Comp help and Automatic Expired and Distressed lead Delivery, while Few will agree to a $500 per bought house gift based on trust of your word alone. 

One time we flipped a house with Ikea and gave the homeowner a $1000 gift card for a full-price offer... and it worked.* If the cabinets are installed correctly, they're good and sturdy.CONS -* Easy to pick up... until that one piece you need is unavailable and will take 6 months to get to you from China.* Contractors hate them and it's virtually impossible to bill enough to cover assembly.* It's almost impossible to wrap a typical installer's (or carpenter's) brain around the assembly method.