these areas are good money makers because the rents are not that much cheaper than better parts of town (lower middle class), but the houses often sell for 1/3rd.

If there are gutters, make sure the downspouts are at the front of the garage.I wouldn't suggest any type of outside sump pump unless you absolutely cannot find a way to let gravity move the water.Otherwise, when you sell the property, advertise an indoor water feature.

I figured a little extra if it could be the difference maker would be worth it for a home I could spend a lot of years in.

I have a real estate attorney who said he would not flip it as it can become a real money maker. weddings are 6000 and up and Halloween can be a haunted mansion.For a place that is 121 years old I think its in great shape.

I think if you dig deeper you'll find that even the law makers in Cali did not intend to make a RE Broker a Mortgage Originator to the public.

I'm not familiar with Cali but if the s/l was 4 years for contracts and unsecued notes I'd put my money betting on 4 years.I'd weigh the option of proceeding regardless of the s/l as the borrower would need to bring that as a defense, I'd bet they don't if no payment was ever made.Another issue, if a payment was never made it sounds like mortgage fraud that is another category getting to criminal charges, the s/l will be longer, 7, 10, 12 years, not sure, it depends too if the original was an insured lending institution or a private individual.It also depends if the note was generated from an installment sale or was made as a cash loan, purchase or refi.It will also depend on whois in the property and if the property has been sold over the past 16 years, we just had an example of a subject 2 deal going sour with subsequent sales and that can limit your security if the note holder fails to act in a timely manner.Frankly, I wouldn't fool with this one, 16 years old, foreclosure notice gievn and never followed through, that's pretty much allowing the note to go stale and abandoning the claim of the amounts owed.If the maker of the note is still in the property and you can contact them by phone or in person, you might be able to negoiate something holding the fraud claim over thier head, forgive some of it and modify it back to life, but they need to agree and you can certainly bluff your way along to a point.

I only deal with experienced decision makers.

Food & beverages is a big money maker is what I hear in both places.6.

@Thomas Dionne make really good friends with a title agent to run title reports prior to purchase.

Myth, don't rely on that as you need to look to state law, the intent of use, the maker's business use, property type and how regulators will slot or classify the loan.