@Tom Gimer And I had lunch last week when I was in DC and we talked about this in depth.

@Roger D Jones I think you just hit it out of the park with your last sentence.

. - not my first choice, unethical, needs cashb) Get to do a 13% or 19% rent increase if rents haven't been increased since May 1977 or May 1976, respectively - I will find out if there are records going this far back in due diligence phase, if offer gets acceptedc) Operate with a loss or very low NOI for 1 year, after that we will be eligible to apply for a Just & Reasonable Rent Adjustment. - with this, we can potentially increase rents by up to 145% depending on a comparison with baseline 1977 level rent amount.I have 2 questions:1) If there exists these 2 other, legal ways to increase rent in a rent controlled area, why does it seems like the only option most investors consider is cash for keys?

The tenant fails to pay their last month's rent and leaves the place needing new flooring and paint.

The major markets in Arizona and Nevada got very crazy the last few years.

Losses, including carried forward from RE (tax form 8582) can be used to significantly offset roth conversions in early retirement if you keep income under the threshold. 

Some/many states require the landlord to provide the bill for replacement (not what it cost the last time they did it). 

What happened with the last one that I analyzed was the primary was changed so significantly, by a flipper who appeared to have done great, that there was no way to determine value added by ADU.  

The deals are all "while they last" and some of the deals aren't deals at all, so know know what you are getting and what it's worth.Hope this helps 

The payments typically are 1-3 years (but there's no real standard) and don't have additional interest added.Asking price: $280 Million (different currency than USD)Last year's asking price $250 Million (we assume the price increase is because of inflation)The owner doesn't seem in a hurry to sell and when we asked if he'd negotiate last year at $250 million he said no.I'd like to offer the following 3 options to see if any of these work for him:Option 1: 250 Million upfront Option 2:140 Million upfront130 Million in 6 months.