I suspect the options will fall into two buckets: hard money lenders and local banks.  

And I suspect the only reason why he will be able to or even willing to pay for a 2 bed rent is because he will be subleasing the other bedroom or potentially charging a higher rent for the other bedroom to profit from it at your own expense. 

This way the plumber doesn't have to research the permit costs for each municipality before making bids.I suspect it varies by jurisdiction.

@Eric Veronica his lender is likely counting SchE losses against him for repairs - that's what I suspect.

I wish it were that easy but suspect the wouldn’t meet the requirements of “safekeeping”.

In exchange they will want a quick closing, not too complicated, I suspect.

@Jean-Marie Poth If you have the cell phone number for the person and you suspect the person is local, it might not hurt to call your local police department.

And I suspect that long-term appreciation will be strong. 

But, I suspect it's going to cost a bit more to turn each unit.  

I suspect you have a dreamer trying to put this together.. and a seller who wants it to happen probably because they are selling it for more than its worth.