The most prudent thing to do would be: Find a nice but inexpensive rental and then live below your means for about a year, maybe you have a buddy who is trying to house hack and you can rent a room from someone else.

That is not your problem their buddies changed their mind and these two need more time than the others to move.Do NOT agree to take the extra week out of the SD. 

Do I ask my buddy (private equity) to just buy the home himself, putting the deed in his name while I do the work on it, and then we deed it over once my refinance is done? 

@Chris Rendall 10-4 good buddy.

My buddy just approached me with an offer to invest with him in buying foreclosures, he is a GC and he has done house flipping before, he wants me to invest 30K-50K of my own money and use it to get a 6 month rehab loan from a hard money lender at a little over 11% interest, after the House was finished we would split 50/50, he would also add me to his LLC that we would use for that future buy, the reason I’m thinking about investing Is bc I own my own business which will bring 200K this year in gross profits, the down side of my business is that I work 12 hour a day 5 days a week, and I feel that I’m slowly burning out.

@Martin GrizzantiHey buddy call Lawrence assoc and speak to Jan She is good with this stuff.

I found some 'discount broker' (I now am under a buddy). 

Then we can invite your buddies for their wonderful perspective...I'm generally OK when someone wants to have an honest conversation about project cash flow and ensure they aren't way behind / @RISK. 

Even ignoring the 'theft' risks, you have gift tax return exposure (and use of lifetime exemption), transfer taxes, no basis step up involved with gifting the property back and forth, probate risks if the 'buddy' passes away and didn't update their will for the property. 

The housing prices there have also skyrocketed, however; there is a whole bunch of apt complexes being built up now that might eventually balance out prices.I've never bought anything down in Chatt, but all of my investor buddies say it's a great place to find good rentals.Let me know if I can help locally in Nashville and the surrounding areas.