Apart from it being an awesome town, we are also land locked by the Navajo reservation and national parks.

Quote from @Locke Tucker: Can you take the loss without completely ruining your finances?

The more issues you can take off their plate before you lock it up under contract the better you'll be.

Still, I managed to lock it in for $145,000 by emphasizing how much TLC (and cash) it needed to bring it back to life.

Some people seem to get locked in to one place they find, or a place a friend or family member is selling without really evaluating the available market.In a small town in East Texas I would think your biggest risk is a big player coming to town that can absolutely crush a smaller player. 

Unless you're locking up 10 acres in a large metro where a DR Horton or KB homes might come in, thats a little less localized.

Turning over management via a triple net lease is a great way to lock in superior cash flow thru a 15%+ long term lease.

It would be a shame to rent it long term to someone who can lock in rent control at these depressed renal rates (and then never move out). 

We have managed to build a solid liquid nest egg, but I'm hesitant to lock the majority of it up in a low LTV mortgage on a really expensive primary residence.

But how do you exit the deal, as Randy mentioned these are long term loans and investors are not going to want to be in a deal locked up for that long of a period of time.