@Kyle Spearin because of my credit score and college debt, I was drawn to some of the creative methods of purchasing rentals I read about on “Rental Property Investing with Low to No Money Down”.

I felt $25-30k was a good cushion to start out with before I look into other ways to creatively finance the rest.

They pay your downpayment at closing, then you make payments to them each month until it's paid off.It's a creative idea.

Here I was just about to start really buying houses for profit.I guess I'm hoping for creative ideas?  

Their pitch is that it’s much cheaper and more creative than hard money.

Unfortunately there aren't any direct comps currently for rent in our town so I am having to get a bit creative to come up with a number.

Put extra thought in to the layout though- at 1300sf and a converted garage, chances are you'll have to be creative with how it's done, and if the layout isn't done well, it could be a liability and decrease the value of your property. 

What are good creative financing strategies do you recommend if I buy and flip?

I am open to other creative capital raising methods except syndication.

As Jaysen said above, talk to some lenders in your area to see if they do commercial or portfolio loans, where they can be a little more creative than lenders who have to stick to conventional loan standards.4.