Retail you may have an easier time getting away with with the municipal body.

I will be meeting with a very motivated seller in a few days and I wanted to know if any body could tell me if I will need a letter of authorization.

Any body familiar with any of this?

A couple of things flawed with your options:No body has a crystal ball so unless you are certain that there will be a fire sale 2/3/4 years while you are in CD's, stay in the real estate game.  

Last time I was there, I was running in the Hood to Coast relay—what happened to my body (sniff)?

However, when I reached out to the husband he told me that they didn't feel comfortable having people come through because the wife is immunocompromised (weakened immune system).

@Jason Vo If I were to buy in those areas near bodies of water or levee districts, I would not hold on to them for too long. 

After digging in with the mortgage broker it seems that the National Credit Union governing body illy allows credit unions to make 15yr loans on commercial properties.

Only mom's name appears in the Grantee's block (Mary Smith to Mary Smith as to a life estate) with the daughter's interest mentioned in the body of the deed. 

One wouldn't expect Abilene to have issues with flood zones since we're nowhere near any big bodies of water, but if you've driven around town while it's raining, you know!