Real property exempted under division (A)(3) of this section may be made available by the church on a limited basis to charitable and educational institutions if the property is not leased or otherwise made available with a view to profit.

I personally think there is a sweet spot of deals in the $2m - 8 or 9 mil range where institutional people shy away as it's not big enough and it weeds out a lot of other smaller investors. 

Pittsburgh is home to more than 60 higher education institutions with thousands of students and faculty.

The squatters institute a dynamic that you cannot accurately budget for, so I would be very, very conservative with any offers. 

From what I was told by a Chase lender, most institutions use the same underwriters, who implement this 2 year requirement.I understand that private lending could be an option, however, I'm not sure who would lend to me with favorable terms based on my lack of real estate experience.

The lender is the institution who makes the loan not the guy you talk to. 

To your point above though, the institutional and PE interest in this asset class is a little unsettling.

The seller assumes the role of lender while continuing to make payments on the original mortgage.In this arrangement, the originating lending institution can still foreclose on a property if the seller fails to maintain the mortgage.

AND to buttress that argument...large institutional players and HNW individuals w/ access to capital above what my savings acct will every show don't do unlevered deals.Good posts and thoughts above. 

Owner occupied, meaning consumer loans, DF applies to private loans as well as institutional loans.