If you are assuming the property, you are actually putting the mortgage in your name, and you would need to qualify for the mortgage with the lender.

Be prepared for trial runs with several different candidates if you choose to hire a handyman to make sure they turn out to be qualified and dependable.

The only issue is with a bit lower rent there's a higher number of applicants that won't qualify but I don't mind the volume to get it filled. 

I havnt even spoke to a lender yet on what I qualify for.

Assuming this is in fact a good deal, and your friend is a qualified GC, instead of trying to be the lead investor, he should be searching for someone who has the balance sheet to take down this deal on their and be a transactional participant.

Bird dogging is a way to make money but its not gonna get you rich.WE have had many do some birddogging for us on the private lending side to find qualified people that need a loan and its interesting how many last a few weeks - I sense the same holds true for real estate bird dogs.

Quote from @Dina Schmid: You can sell anything you want, but that doesn't mean it will qualify for a home loan or be accepted by a building inspector. 

If I decide to go with option 1, I will have to borrow the money for the renovations at my primary and it may make it harder to qualify for a loan given the little or no cashflow. 

Just because you find a laundromat that could qualify for SBA doesn't necessarily mean you'll be able to use an SBA loan to buy it if you're beat out by a cash offer.4) Historical cash flow - SBA lenders typically want to see 3 years of historical cash flow.

Qualified Intermediaries come in all shapes and sizes.