For me, I'm letting the pro do it so that a) I don't burn up a week of my time and b) the finished product looks top notch and not DIY.  

Owner pays utilities (so I factor about $600/month for that for everything).Having not looked at the inside of the property yet, although I have driven by, what would be a reasonable estimate for "deferred maintenance" costs?  

Your observation from my perspective is correct that there is an increasing number of "flippers" driven by HGTV.  

@Tommy Nguyen most investors will look in the lower income areas of LA (there happens to be a large amount of multiunits there) but over the past few years investors have bought up all the CA real estate and driven the prices up, so a lot of investors are looking to the Midwest or east coast for investment opportunity. 

SO my 2- part question is this: a) Is it a good idea to look for a lease-to-buy option combined with house hacking {assuming owner allows for master lease option}, b) would the house hacking equity I put into it actually count as my equity I put into the place??

If this is a pure investment/cash flow play then there are better deals out there.But if this is a "I can live there and have someone else covers a big part of my mortgage" play, then I think it is very solid.  

I have even driven to meet them if that is more convenient for them. 

Those of us who were born to be entrepreneurs, are highly motivated, driven, and know how to hustle.

Originally posted by @Jassem A.:I

I am structuring some lot purchases right now which are in flood zone A. I