Otherwise it can get complicated as you really are putting buyers and sellers together, facilitating sales.You need to read your state statutes very carefully word for word as to what requires a real estate license and then don't do those things if you don't have a license.You can be an employee or memebr in a LLC that buys or sells, as a principal, in other words if BAC LLC buys a property and you are a memeber of BAC LLC, you can then be entitled to profits for the work you perform in that LLC.Another way is for you to take an option to buy and then sell your option, this is placing you in a position of havine an interest in the transaction, but those you sell to may have financing issues with this, it also depends on property restrictions or title limitations as beeing seen as sales during a restriction to conveyances, again check and see how these issues are viewed locally.Generally, you can not act as a third party between a buyer and seller and simply arrange or introduce deals and be paid a fee independly as that is a function of a real estate agent/broker.Lastly, it's easy to get a bad reputation amoung Realtors if you're known as a birddog, they will likely see you as unlicensened competiton and expect them to complain and report your activities.

A 1031 is done for like properties, I'd have to investigate it, but raw land may not be like kind for multi-family units.You didn't mention the amount of the gain, if you're at about 500K, you might check on a charitable remainder trust taking a smaller bite now and using funds for property in the trust, if it is a forever property.....see your attorneyYou might offset the gain by seller financing long term and applying the interest as well as principal to the other debt (or not) but the gain would only apply to the % or the principal received over the term.

To my knowledge there has never been a "cram down" reduction of principal amounts owed in any ED process, only through bankruptcy at the federal level.

The principal amount is only $20,000 but with fees, late payments, etc. is now at $32,000.

No, the seller was the principal and he could pass it back and forth to himself and his company a dozen times if he wanted to and then sell it.

You probably know this, but "short" is referring to the fact that the lender is taking a short (less than principal value) payoff of the loan; it has nothing to do with timeframes for the transactions.That said, my fastest short sale was 5 weeks from offer to close; my longest is currently at about 7 months and we're still waiting to hear from the bank...

OTH, if this birddog is working for you I'd suggest you put them inside an LLC on a restricted basis so they can be paid if the company buys or as a partner fee, that will make them a principal.

I am just wondering if there are any legal/financial (as far as taxes go) implications in answering "Yes" or "No" for "This property is intended as my principal residence."

Here is the mortgage calculator from bankrate:http://www.bankrate.com/calculators/mortgages/mortgage-calculator.aspxPut in 280000 for mortgage amount, 30 years term and say 3% interest (very low even for today), and the payment is $1180.49 for just principal and interest.

They then maintain and live in their principal residence after it is titled to the trust.