You need to send him a letter with proof of delivery required (a cheap date with US postal service) and you can also post the Notice in a sealed white envelope marked confidential to his door - and take a photo of it for proof of delivery. 

Nicholas, welcome to Bigger Pockets and thanks for posting.

@Jack Cottrell you post caught my eye.

Once in service, expenses become deductible, reducing taxable rental income.This post does not create a CPA-Client relationship.

PachalAUTHOR · CONSULTANT · SPEAKER · COACH · INVESTORSubject2Institute.comGood post, very touchy situation.  

.- Since we're not really in full control of the property, the Hold Harmless also indemnifies us against anything that goes missing at the property and squatters.We get asked/told to do all kinds of crazy stuff by owners, who either don't care what happens to us or haven't really thought everything through.Hope this addresses your question.

Instead, consider a HELOC or home equity loan to fund repairs, as the interest may be deductible if used for home improvements.This post does not create a CPA-Client relationship.

Perhaps we "buy" the house from them for the $328K balance to satisfy the lender and don't need a large down payment and then have a separate contract with them to pay $x per month until we've paid the full $172K amount.

Since you are not doing super high end finishes as mentioned, doing high end flooring and all other stuff just above builder grade does not warrant tile or full wood flooring. 

He's going to try posting with a real estate agent for 90 days and see how that goes.