Wondering if you have advice on me just being the bank, where I purchase a house and structure a rent to own with him and have him build up a 30% cash down payment and some equity and then me sell the house to him at a locked in price.  

The plan is not clear, but hopefully there will be payments directly to landlords. 

We have secured a home equity loan against our home (which we own out right with no mortgage payment).

I offer an online payment portal to submit rent payments via ACH or CC - they "couldn't figure out how to use it" so I set us up to accept Zelle payments.

Recently, management changed it so both loans can be made with one payment versus two separate transactions. 

Quote from @Jack Townsend: I heard David Greene mention a loan product that only requires a 10% down payment on the purchase price and 10% of the rehab budget.

You could structure the deal as an installment sale or a lease option so the property owner doesn't see a large capital gain tax payment for the sale.And good on you for helping out!

It might be payment notices are going to a different address and it is simply overlooked. 

Here are a couple of ways you could structure the deal:Lease Option with Seller Financing: You could lease the property with an option to buy later, allowing you to rehab it while giving the sellers time to find a 1031 replacement property.Seller Financing with Deferred Payment: Structure the seller financing with no immediate payments, allowing you to refinance once the property is appraised, and the sellers can complete the 1031 exchange when ready.Escrow Holdback: Transfer the deed into an escrow account, giving you control without immediate transfer, so the sellers can take their time with the 1031.Third-Party Facilitation: Use a qualified intermediary to hold funds and facilitate the 1031 exchange while you refinance.These options allow flexibility for both you and the sellers.

If you use it as several down payments and use leverage you could be off to the races with many more Class B or C units that will still cash flow for you.