Perhaps this post is kind of droll.

This is more than enough to tell you what kind of tenants they are going to be.

Blood gets thick and the worst part is 10 years later there are new voices in their ears, telling them all kind of crap and filling it with all kinds of ideas. 

Are there other, more cost-effective alternatives to gain similar support and knowledge?

Quote from @Ashish Acharya: @John Gillick To fully defer taxes in your 1031 exchange from the $450K sale of development rights, you must reinvest the entire amount into like-kind property.

But if you are looking for the most passive way for investing in real estate, you would want to consider a REIT, TIC, or some kind of syndication.

You would need to do some kind of 721/1031 exchange in the future if you sell the property before your death to not recognize that gain/recapture.

I’m really rethinking this.There are no comps in the area to support his price but I’m sure it will appraise, usually it does.$275000 with 25% down, taxes $4080, insurance is 3000 yr and rents is $3800 month, Water $400 mth. 

I met him there that afternoon because these kind of houses don't last long around here.

I kind of like the idea of wholesaling out of state leads, however, with subj to i would be VERY careful who you sell those to.