Simply because rates are higher, homes are not selling, and deals do not work.

After it expired, I contacted the seller and they are now going to list with me. 

Any advice, tips, or scripts for making the initial contact and navigating this process would be greatly appreciated!

Start reaching out to landlords, you can get all their contact info using reonomy which only cost about $100 per month to get direct owner contact points.

I am in contact with a realtor in NC and was informed that builders there will not build without a budget of at least 1million.

A line of credit is adjustable rate with interest only payments that will have a "draw" period usually of 3-5 years for investment properties (usually 10 years for primary home) then will amortize over the remaining term after the draw period.

My question is: when wholesaling, after finding a great deal, do you need real proof of funds to the get the property under contact or is there a way to get it under contract, find a buyer and complete a double closing/assign the right to sell without actually having the cash for the property? 

That 4% cap rate on in place financials is a lie.  

Any insights, advice, or local contacts would be greatly appreciated as I take this next step.Looking forward to learning from and contributing to this community!

:I had a consultation with Andersons a month ago... his youtube videos are great and a lot of good information... but they have packages... and are VERY VERY expensive... for the same setup as other companies for a lot less.I contacted Royal Legal Solutions as well... packages as well and expensive.I also contacted the Small Business office in Kansas and a couple of local lawyers.So far Mark J K has been the best consultation and fees as very down to earth... but will confirm tomorrow :)