I'm taking the duration of my debt repayment as a time to learn more about real estate investing. 

Agree with much of above....I have rented out condos over a decade now.. and these have their own unique characteristics... little mini-democracies...I have not done any through Home Path, but do find out about any pending assessments, any past dues, etc and how it will be handled at closing.

My tenant base is 100% blue-collar type & I couldn't be happier working with this kind of tenant, although there will be unique situations.Deb - Take some time and read through this book.

These small markets with unique cases could easily be outliers.

This is a document which gives proof of your registration and a unique 15-digit Service Tax Number.

Be creative and come up with your own unique ideas.

He will be obligated to repay the mortgage.

What's their level of expertise - how many unique alternative investments do they hold?

Where do you want to be geographically, involved as work, and in what cash flow position.Your situation is as unique as you are and there are 1031 applications that can reach exactly where you want to be and help you get there.  

He is selling it for a fraction of the price and is offering seller financing with a significant down payment and would prefer a cash deal.This is a deal I really want to close on; Is it possible to acquire the property in full with hard money and do a cash out refinance to repay the HML?