Ask them open ended questions that will reveal the answer.

House was built in 2006Listed at $185kHas been assessed at $244-255k every year since 2007Property taxes ~$5,200Disclosure does not reveal any major issues with the house -- just missing kitchen appliances and railing needed on back deckGiven the spread between the list price and the assessed price (and my simple Zillow tour of neighborhood prices), it seems like this house could potentially be a great deal for me.  

A share that will almost certainly be LESS than 50%, by the way.Steve was suggesting that title searches on similar projects would reveal the names of the investors involved in those projects, and provide you with a list of people to approach.

Banks tell you what is needed up front and hard money folks are a bit less revealing  or up with information.  

John Berg:In some jurisdictions if it is revealed you did not pull permits {which will happen as it is part of your disclosure as a "professional"} an annotation will be placed on the title of the property and title will not be transferrable until any missed permits and inspections have been addressed .... even if that means reopening your walls because you missed your rough-in inspections.

I had the inspection and it revealed several significant issues.

A simple Google search on them reveals enough that would make me run away.

And you know how that can go.Sounds to me like the whole picture has not yet revealed itself.

A cruise through the MLS revealed a few possibilities.A full 2/3 of those listings have a land area that disagreed with what the county assessor said was there.

I know already the seller will know my fee revealed on the HUD-1, but think he'll be OK as long as I'm not too greedy.Appreciate any feedback or suggestions, especially if you've done something similar.