Down payment should be about the same (20% on a buy-and-hold) but you'll see an additional $3-$6k on average in CC and the ability to keep it off of your DTI/Personal credit along with hopefully no more hard inquiries on your credit (many lenders will accept/perform a soft pull).

Or are they performing some sort of arbitrage and they are not the end buyer.

Put together a spreadsheet and compare the performance of the subject property if you keep renting it as is for the next 10 or 20 years versus if you rehab and refinance.

I’ve invested relatively small amounts in “flyers”, and because the invested amount was small in relation to my overall portfolio chose not to perform a thorough due diligence.  

And, past performance is no guarantee of future results. 

It reminds me of the Charles Schwab study - their best performing retail investment accounts were from dead people that never closed out the account.

I created the following decision tree diagram to illustrate the decision process (click to enlarge).The above decision process is based on the property’s performance record, with the goal of achieving financial freedom in mind.Financial freedom is not just replacing your current income.

Haha, but you know what they say - past performance is no guarantee of future results. 

RTR advertises high returns as part of their marketing strategy, but the reality is that many of their properties do not perform as well as advertised.

This is purely anecdotal, but I've noticed that the top performing properties in my area lead with an exterior shot.