Hello All,I know that Master Lease Options have been discussed a ton on here, but after searching endlessly I couldn't find anything addressing some specific concerns/questions I had so here it goes...The potential seller is a full time firefighter who has 3 very involved kids and is also a part owner of restaurants across the country with his brother. 

I record deeds of trusts in the amount of PP and rehab using it as the mortgagee. 

It is very common to spend 100K on a rehab in Newark because often there is TONS of maintenance, and things like water damage can lead to major structural and framing issues that need to be addressed, original wiring (which is often unsafe), galvanized plumbing pipes, old windows, heat systems, ect.

Trust your gut. 

If you're not going to see the house yourself, you absolutely need someone you trust to do a walk through.  

There is an update to be had at the end here, but i wanted to address a few responses first.

By working with a trusted advisor who knows their market, you will be able to quickly identify the pockets in each city that will produce a predictable income. 

Find several Property management companies that you can trust.

You might have noticed that people that have been successful with rental units in  houses have to own about 20 or 30 of them just to cover their monthly bills, then they might get some of the profit when they own 30 or 40 all at different addresses.With apartment complexes you might just have one address where you have many units. 

You guys in CA are different kind of special, but I think you might have options with a Delaware trust - talk with @Scott Smith.4.