These are big money plays life changing profits but RISK you bet..

Other wise they would have bought it at the auction and would have told you they owned them so you would not waste your time and money bidding.. that's the other play these redemption buyers play.

 @Drew Sygityes it only applies to owner occupied properties regarding penalties, that is not 100% correct, there are fdcpa violations as well as potential state law penalties that can come into play that can be very significant. 

I also understand accounting and legality may play a role.

As it is when money is at play.

That is the difference.The convertible equity play is just garbage.  

If this is your first investment and your first property, the quickest way to fail is to create an uneven playing field.

I also have one neighborhood that I am hoping to purchase an SFH as an appreciation play.

But she takes excellent care of them (even put in a small concrete pool for them to play in during the summer:-).

The property cash flows and I could definitely see each investor making at least $1000/mo with the most hands-off approach of renting to an operator and much more if a person ran it as STR or LTR and it is a great diversification play for me as Costa Rica should see much better appreciation than the Midwest, but if I were to cash out I could see five times the cash flow because of the power of leverage.But I think you hit the nail on the head in saying that it is a lifestyle type of investment.